Birmingham Fire & Rescue performed 13 blood transfusion in the field since August

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) – A pilot program with Birmingham Fire & Rescue finding success this summer. They started carrying blood products on calls, and now it’s an official part of the field supervisor’s kit.

Field supervisors started carrying blood on calls back in August. Battalion Chief Clay Hendon says they’ve used it on 13 traumatic injury patients so far with 11 positive outcomes, which he says is a huge success.

He explains that in the past, they only had IV fluids to give medical or trauma patients and while that does serve a purpose, he says it’s not replacing what the patient is actually losing which is blood. Now that they can bring whole blood in the field, they hope to save more lives.

Hendon says it’s going to become the gold standard for departments across the country. Birmingham Fire & Rescue is the first in the state and the third in the country to utilize it.

“The impact that this will have on the community is going to the very significant,” said Hendon. “It’s going to be huge. We’re looking forward to getting it out to the citizens and it’s going to save a lot of lives. It’s an opportunity that EMS has never had before and we’re anxious to be a part of — one of the first ones to get the opportunity to do it.”

While the whole blood is already in the field through the field supervisor, they hope to start helping even more people by putting it on the rescue units starting in the spring.

All of this is possible through the collaborative effort with UAB and Red Cross.

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