The US Army Combat Lifesaver Program

More recent studies by COL Ron Bellamy, US Army (1993) led him to conclude that if in the next war one could only do two things promptly on the battlefield:
1. Put on a tourniquet
2. Relieve a tension pneumothorax
That one could save between 70 to 90 percent of all preventable deaths on the battlefield. In combat the availability of trained medical personnel to provide immediate far forward care is limited. The combat lifesaver is a nonmedical Soldier trained to provide emergency lifesaving care as a secondary mission. US Army doctrine has for several years required each squad, crew, or section to have at least one member trained as a combat lifesaver. Due to the proven effectiveness of this course in reducing loss of life the US Army has within the past few months made Combat Lifesaver training mandatory for ALL soldiers during their Initial Entry Training (during their first six months of service). This is in addition to the Self-Aid Buddy-Aid (SABA) which has been required for several years.