New life-saving technique for shark attack victims

Dr Nicholas Taylor: 'I want posters at beaches. I want to get it out in the surf community.'  - A simple new first-aid technique could help avoid fatalities from shark attacks, according to a new study by The Australian National University (ANU). The method involves a bystander using their own bodyweight to make a fist and "push hard between the hips and the bits". Lead author, surfer, emergency physician and Associate Dean of the ANU Medical School, Dr Nicholas Taylor, said the method reliably stops or reduces blood loss by using immediately available resources to treat lower limb haemorrhage.    "In shark attacks, most people don't actually get bitten twice and they can make it back to the shore," Dr Taylor said.  "I thought, if you make it to the beach with a friend and they're bleeding from the leg, what would be the best thing you could do?  "I knew from my background in emergency medicine if people have massive bleeding from their leg, you can push very hard on the femoral artery and you can pretty much cut the entire blood flow of the leg that way.  "If someone has been bitten on their leg, you only need to find the middle point between the hip and the genitals, make a fist and push as hard as you can.    "We found people can do this for a long period of time and making a fist covers the area you need. It's not hard to find. It could even be marked with an X on a wetsuit."  The method requires bodyweight to be applied via a fist to the midpoint between the hips and the genitals, the mid inguinal point.