Step 1 of 5 · now
Press hard now
Use a fist, knee, or both hands on the hole. Push toward bone where you can. Do not dab. Continuous pressure.
1 h to careBuddydelayed
Life threat — do the NOW steps before anything else.
When this applies · do not
- Heavy bleeding from groin, buttocks, armpit, shoulder, or neck
- Tourniquet cannot sit above the wound
- Blood welling from a deep hole at a limb root
Red flags
- Neck bleed: do not pack so hard you crush the windpipe. Pack the hole, not the airway.
- If blood is coming from the chest or belly cavity, packing the skin will not stop it — get them out.
Do not
- Do not use a limb tourniquet on the neck.
- Do not take out a packing that is working.
- Do not put fingers blindly into a neck wound toward the spine.
Reassess wrap. Add packing if soak-through — do not pull the old packing out.
Field aid tool — not a diagnosis, not a medic, not your unit’s official protocol. When a trained medic or doctor is there, follow them.