Medical Director's Desk

Melissa W. Costello, M.D., FACEP

"Sixty percent of deaths from gunshot wounds can be attributed to exsanguination.” notes Dr Costello. "The victim bleeds to death before medical personnel can get to them. With a ResQ-PAK in your pocket, you can literally save your own life. No one in law enforcement or the military should go into the field without one."
Melissa W. Costello, M.D., FACEP

Dr. Costello is a board certified emergency physician who has served as a SWAT tactical physician and medical advisor for several law enforcement entities, including her most recent work with the federal agencies in Mobile, Alabama. In addition to her tactical work, Dr. Costello maintains an active clinical and teaching schedule in the emergency department and works closely with the ground EMS, helicopter EMS and disaster medical communities locally and nationally.

WHY CHITOGAUZE™ ?

In keeping our commitment to provide the best pocket-sized solutions to life threatening problems, Blueline Tactical is now equipping ResQ-PAKs with HemCon ChitoGauze™, the latest innovation in hemostatic technology. From the makers of HemCon® bandages which have been saving lives on the battlefield since 2003, comes this new, revolutionary, and uniquely formulated chitosan impregnated gauze dressing. ChitoGauze™ slows blood movement through the dressing binding red blood cells and platelets on the dressing surface, and providing localized clotting independent from the normal clotting cascade*.

HEMOSTATIC - Controls severe bleeding caused by extreme trauma FAST


ANTIBACTERIAL - Effective against a wide range of microorganisms including MRSA, VRE and A. baumannii, as cleared by the FDA


Z-FOLDED - Easy handling and rapid application in emergency situations

LAYERS OF SAFETY

  • Localized clotting – mitigates risk of emboli formation
  • No pro-clotting agents
  • Gauze-form without powders or granules
  • Easy to apply – minimal training required
  • Easily removed – does not cause tissue damage
  • Sterile
  • Latex free

Reflections on Tactical Medicine

The thing I was most unprepared for when I started doing tactical medicine was the attachment. One of the reasons I went into Emergency Medicine was that there were NOT long-term patient relationships. Despite the initial hurdles of being a female in a mostly male field, reflecting on my most recent role as a tactical doctor working with a stable SWAT team I realize how attached I have become. Alongside their medical histories and blood types, I know stories about these guys -- their wives, their kids, the office politics, their dreams. These guys are family.

I hope I never learn what it means to lose one of them. I hope that our intelligence and pre-operational planning always neutralize the threats we encounter. The reality is that this is an unpredictable job and tragedy strikes even the most prepared.

This is one reason I am so excited about my association with ResQ-Pak. I can't be everywhere all the time for all my men. ResQ-PAK allows LEOs to self treat or do buddy aid so that they survive the unexpected injury until a tactical doctor like myself can get to them.

"ResQ-PAK™ is the one thing you want in your pocket if you go down."

- Melissa W. Costello, M.D., FACEP



Copyright © 2012 RESQ-PAK™. All Rights Reserved.
ResQ-PAK was designed for law enforcement, corrections officers and military personnel - plainclothes, protection detail, patrol, high-risk warrant service, tactical - who are injured when tactical medics are not immediately available to treat. The ResQ-PAK provides First Aid supplies for the emergency self-treatment (or buddy-aid) of gunshot wounds, stab wounds and other, especially bleeding, trauma. ResQ-Pak is ideal in treating victims in an active shooter situation. Sixty percent of deaths from gunshot wounds can be attributed to exsanguination. ResQ-PAK contains the most essential first-aid supplies contained in a blow-out bag, the latest hemostatic technology (haemostatic technology) and other vital First Aid supplies in a vacuum-sealed, watertight /airtight, low profile, light-weight package that neatly fits into a suit jacket pocket, cargo pocket, gas mask pouch, swat vest, BDU pocket, a drop bag for mags, a gun belt pouch. ResQ-Pak is a pocket-size solution to a life-threatening problem. With a ResQ-PAK in your pocket, you can literally save your own life. No one in law enforcement, corrections or the military should go into the field without one.