Stop the Bleed can help you save a life

Dozens of youth from the Flemingdon Park community gathered at a nearby community centre to get firsthand training on how to control bleeding in emergencies. Engaged and empowered, it was clear that the youth were ready to learn how to save a life.

Stop the Bleed (STB) is a program designed to teach bystanders how to control severe bleeding. It also prepares them with the skills to help keep an injured person alive while waiting for first responders. Since 2021, TCHC has partnered with Sunnybrook Hospital to deliver this training to tenants across the city. 

Community Navigator Kristie Oroma made the connection between STB and the Flemingdon Park community. According to  Kristie, a lot of youth access support and resources through the local iHelp centre. “I felt that it was important for them to have the tools and resources to save another life in case of an incident,” she said. 

Omer, a youth from the Flemingdon Park community, said that he signed up to get the certification that he can add to his résumé. “I recommend this workshop to my friends because it’s a great way to develop skills that they can [apply] in their lives,” he said. 

Shaelyn Fitzpatrick, an Injury Prevention Educator at Sunnybrook Hospital, shared why tenants should take this workshop. “A life-threatening bleed can lead to death in as little as three to five minutes,” she said. “It’s critical that members of the public understand what they can do in those immediate moments before first responders arrive on scene. It can be the difference between life and death.”

During the two-hour workshop, youth learned how to stop the bleed through three life-saving techniques: how to use their hands to apply pressure, how to pack a wound, and how to use a tourniquet. Participants then practiced these skills on mannequins. 

One participant, Joseph, enjoyed the hands-on section of the workshop. “It really showed me that if something should happen in the community, I will know how to deal with it.”

Communities that take part in the STB workshops receive bleeding control kits. They are placed in a public area in buildings for tenants to use. Each kit has tourniquets, gauze, gloves, scissors, and bandages. 

“A common thing that comes up in the training is how to access tools to stop a life-threatening bleed,” said Shaelyn. “[Sunnybrook] has developed a bleeding control kit that provides the tools that will help stop a critical bleed. In partnership with TCHC, we have been able to get these kits into communities so they can be accessible to tenants.” 

A few days after the STB workshop, two youth put their skills to the test. They applied what they learned in the workshop to help an injured youth from their community—ultimately saving his life.