EMT Lesson Plans

6.13 Trauma Skills II Station: Traction Splinting Instructor Guidance

Objectives:

Properly apply a traction splint such as HARE.

Setup:

You will need your cohort bag. You will also need a HARE kit that includes:

- Traction Splint with Ankle Hitch

- Towel for padding

- Triangle Bandage (optional)

Deployment:

DO NOT LECTURE – your students should be working hands-on within 5 minutes of arriving

Deploy your students in one team – one student should be patient, the rest rescuers. The patient is deemed stable during the primary assessment. The students should perform all skills steps on the Traction Splint skills sheet. Please note the following:

- DO NOT have them ask males “what side they are dressed on?”

- Do not get into the cravat ankle hitch. We should be encouraging students to have properly checked equipment, not how to improvise when they forget to do a rig check.

- Insure neurovascular status is assessed before and after the splint

- Continue rotating students until time is up. Do not stop applying the device even if you think the ‘Students got it”. This product is rarely utilized in the field and it’s likely this practice will be the only practice they will have until they really need to use it.

Debriefing:

Give students feedback on the application of the device after it is complete. A good traction splint will:

- Lengthen the leg to the size of the opposite leg

- Not sag when manual traction is released

- Have 2 straps above and 2 straps below the knee (if the patient is tall enough – otherwise 1 above the knee is fine).

- Have the straps be off the knee and off the fracture site