U.S Army Garrison Fort Hunter Liggett’s (FHL’s) remoteness and the robust efforts of Fire Captain Devon Haggie allowed the installation to be the first in the U.S. Army and Department of Defense to receive the life-saving capability to transfuse whole blood by its Emergency Medical Service (EMS). In addition, no EMS system in California otherwise currently provides this capability, making the FHL program the first in the state. Prehospital whole blood programs are the aspiration of many EMS systems nationwide.
“Having this system and the ability to provide whole blood to injured Soldiers and civilians on Fort Hunter Liggett is a life changer,” said Haggie, EMS Coordinator. He witnessed the significance of this program during a visit with San Antonio Fire Department EMS in Texas last year.
“They told me stories of people being completely unresponsive and most likely going to die. And with one unit of whole blood administered, the patients are actually sitting up and talking while being wheeled into the trauma center. That alone is extremely eye-opening to me, and being so remote was one of the reasons why I pursued this capability for the installation,” said Haggie.