Call for more bleed control kits in Cov to help stab victims
A RALLYING cry has gone out for Coventry to get more bleed control kits to help save victims of knife crime.
The call comes after a knife was found hidden in bushes at a city park with police previously warning that those who conceal weapons in public are willing to return to use it should them deem it necessary.
Coventry is certainly no stranger to knife crime with last month seeing an 18-year-old stabbed during a fight involving up to ten people in Foleshill, as well as the conclusion of the Ramani Morgan murder trial.
Ramani, who was just 16, was stabbed to death following a row at a house party in the city. His killer will be sentenced later this month.
This had led to Cllr Jayne Innes calling for more bleed control kits to be sourced and placed at venues and public places around the city.
On average, it takes an ambulance responding to a 999 call from someone with life-threatening illnesses or injuries, seven minutes to reach a patient, but bleeding from serious injuries - such as those suffered in a stabbing, shooting, car or industrial accident - can prove fatal in three to five minutes.
Bleed control kits can help save precious time until paramedics arrive at the scene and prevent catastrophic bleeding proving fatal.
Cllr Innes said: “If you can get them help in the first four minutes, it makes all the difference if you can stem the blood before paramedics get to them.
“The packs have torniquets and pads and gloves to protect the person trying to help. They are kept in bars or dedicated places in case there’s an emergency and someone there knows what to do.”
Cllr Innes said that Coventry City Council could buy some for the city, if the funding was available, and said they could always team up with partners to buy some of the kits.
“They are relatively inexpensive and if it can help save just one life, that makes a massive, massive difference,” she added.
The kits, called Daniel Baird Foundation Bleed Control Kits, are championed by mum Lynne Baird after her son Daniel was fatally stabbed in Birmingham in 2017.
The 26-year-old died due to catastrophic bleeding, but Lynne believes the anti-bleed kits could have saved his life.
The kits cost £96 each and have been produced by Prometheus Medical and contain specialist equipment to help stem extreme blood loss before ambulance crews arrive.
West Midlands Ambulance Service helped design the kit and WMAS Trauma Lead, Shane Roberts, said: “I am in no doubt that having kit like this available will undoubtedly save someones life. In some circumstances it is those first few minutes that will make the difference between life and death.”
Anyone interested in buying a bleed control kit can visit the Daniel Baird Foundation website.