RANCHO CORDOVA, CA (MPG) - Recently, the Rotary Club of Rancho Cordova in partnership with UC Davis Medical Center hosted two free “Stop the Bleed, Save a Life” training courses in the City of Rancho Cordova.

The American College of Surgeons Stop the Bleed is a grassroots national awareness campaign and call-to-action to encourage bystanders to become trained, equipped and empowered to help in an emergency before professional help arrives. Over 2.1 million people worldwide have been trained through the program on how to stop bleeding in a severely injured person.

Rotarian Walt Little heard about the Stop the Bleed campaign and brought it to the Rotary Club as a suggestion of how to serve the Rancho Cordova community. He worked with Dr. David Shatz to arrange the training logistics, materials and aids.

“With a background that includes medical and trauma response training, I discovered that ‘panic’ plays a significant role in most major medical emergencies. Even the simplest task can be overwhelming if you don’t know what to do,” said Little. “Soon after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, I was introduced to the Stop the Bleed program and realized the value in its simplicity. Opportunity has led me to the decision to promote and train anyone who will listen. The ability to overcome panic and stop the bleeding to potentially save someone’s life is invaluable.”

The first training course was a train-the-trainer for individuals to become certified to teach the community. Fourteen representatives from the Rancho Cordova Police Department, Sacramento Police Department, Sacramento VA Medical Center, Emergency Medical Services Authority, American River Bike Patrol, and Rotary Club became certified trainers.

The second training course was for the Rancho Cordova community. Thirty-seven people signed up for the program through the City of Rancho Cordova’s Volunteer Central, a new one-stop-shop for those who are interested in volunteering and for organizations and businesses who are seeking volunteers.

The participants were presented with a certificate of completion and their own tourniquet at the end of the training course. They learned five steps to stop the bleed and help save a life:

Take care of yourself to be safe and not become another victim; Call 911 for help; Use pressure with hands, if possible; Pack the wound and press; Apply a tourniquet.

“My wife and I were thrilled to have this opportunity to enhance our first aid skills with the Stop the Bleed course,” said Rancho Cordova resident Jim Garcia. “With an easy-to-follow slide show and presentation by Walt Little, it was terrific to also have a hands-on application of our newly acquired skills on ourselves and other participants. The certified trainers helped the audience better understand the techniques and guide us as necessary during the hands-on demonstration. You never know when you may need to Stop the Bleed!”

The Rotary Club and UC Davis plan to bring future Stop the Bleed trainings to Rancho Cordova. Go to the city’s Volunteer Central website for upcoming volunteer opportunities or to promote your volunteer opportunity at CityofRanchoCordova.org/volunteer.