TRAUMAGEL Deployed in South Carolina to Save Firefighter's Hand
Source: Cresilon
ORANGEBURG COUNTY, SC—Orangeburg County Emergency Medical Services (OCEMS) in South Carolina has a new tool in its emergency kit that's already saving lives, including a local firefighter. Orangeburg resident, husband, father, and volunteer fireman Casey Bolin was severely injured in an accident, severing an artery in his hand, leaving him at risk of losing a limb or even worse, bleeding to death before a two-hour LifeNet flight to PRISMA Health for surgery.
Bolin was using a saw to build a wooden swing for his 8-month-old granddaughter when his life quickly changed.
“The wood hit a knot or something. It happened so quick, I really don’t know what happened,” he told ABC 25 out of Columbia, SC.
The accident left Bolin's hand slashed open, with three broken bones and four separated tendons.
“It was pretty much hanging off. I had to hold my hand up to put my hand back in place,” he said.
Faced with a life-threatening bleeding emergency, first responders tried to use a tourniquet, but it wasn't effective. They quickly turned to their new technology, TRAUMAGEL—a revolutionary plant-based hemostatic gel that controls severe bleeding in seconds—to save his hand from nerve damage and his life from severe blood loss. In a remarkable turn of events, first responders were trained on using TRAUMAGEL a week before Bolin's accident.
“I’ve done a lot of cool things in my career as a paramedic for almost 15 years, and this is one of the coolest things I’ve ever done,” said Orangeburg County EMS Training Captain Jeff Elian, who administered the TRAUMAGEL.
OCEMS is the first in the state of South Carolina to start using TRAUMAGEL in the field. Bolin and his wife met with his lifesavers and the team behind TRAUMAGEL to present them with "Hero Coins" in recognition of saving his life and their dedicated service in Orangeburg County.
Launched earlier this year, TRAUMAGEL is a revolutionary plant-based gel that controls bleeding in a matter of seconds. In addition to Orangeburg County, TRAUMAGEL is now being used in many other areas across the country. The groundbreaking medical technology was invented by Cresilon CEO and Co-Founder Joe Landolina when he was just a 17-year-old student at New York University.
