County law enforcement receive emergency medical kits

County law enforcement receive emergency medical kits News Staff Tue, 06/25/2024 - 12:58 pm

• (TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Law enforcement agencies in Young County received Stop the Bleed kits at a Graham City Council meeting Thursday, June 20. These kits were provided by Graham Regional Medical Center, Olney Hamilton Hospital and Young County and will be placed in officer vehicles to aid in emergency responses. From left to right: Terri Busey, Brent Bullock, Jarod Cook, Bobby Hadderton and Alex Heartfield.
• (TC GORDON | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Texas Division of Emergency Management’s Jarod Cook (second from right) shakes hands with Graham Police Chief Brent Bullock (second from left) at a Graham City Council meeting Thursday, June 20.

TC Gordon news@grahamleader.com

Young County’s law enforcement departments took another step towards being better able to respond to emergency situations when they were presented with Stop the Bleed kits last week.

The Graham Police Department, Olney Police Department and Young County Sheriff’s Office were recipients of 60 kits to carry primarily in vehicles and to have in other locations when responding to emergency calls.

Jarod Cook, of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, presented the kits at a Graham City Council meeting Thursday, June 20. Each kit contains two tourniquets, four abdominal pads, 10 4x4 gauze pads, three rolls of cling gauze and 10 Band-Aids.

Cook worked in conjunction with Young County commissioners, Graham Regional Medical Center and Olney Hamilton Hospital to get the bags filled. Back in March, Cook presented this idea to the county commissioners, who supported it fully.

Cook shared in a commissioners court meeting Monday, March 25, the need for law enforcement officers, in particular, to have access to these lifesaving kits.

“With officers patrolling the streets 24/7, they’re oftentimes first on scene and within minutes of an incident taking place, they will be able to provide life-saving interventions to victims, buying them precious time until advanced life support arrives via ambulance,” he said.

GPD Chief Brent Bullock was on hand to receive the kits at the meeting, but they have been delivered to the various law enforcement agencies since then.

At the commissioners court meeting a few months back, Cook shared an example of why he felt these kits were necessary and he reiterated that fact before the presentation of the kits.

“The fate of the wounded lies in the hands who apply the first dressing. A couple of months back, I went to a call, and when I got there, there were two officers treating a trauma patient, and they were using the equipment they had at hand, and they were doing an awesome job at stopping the bleed; they were doing great with what they had,” Cook said. “After the fact, I learned that most of our officers in the county don’t have Stop the Bleed kits in their vehicles. So I decided I needed to change that.”

With these specially designed kits, officers will be better prepared to respond to crises and keep things as secure as they can until paramedics and other agencies arrive. First responders will have better equipment to provide a lifesaving bridge between the scene and the necessary help the people involved need.

“One of the things that we always do as your public servants is we always look at how we can do things better,” Graham City Manager Eric Garretty said. “What is it that we’re not doing, not only to protect the lives and safety of the public, which is our first priority, but also to make sure that we can do it safely.”

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