Our Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team has been doing an evaluation some of new products being introduced into the marketplace by a company called PerSys Medical. Our team operates in Bonneville County, based out of Idaho Falls, Idaho. We cover 1,868 square miles of land and 32 square miles of water. We have a distinct four season climate that attracts outdoor recreationalists from far and wide. The casualty/survival blankets and jacket appear to be very well thought out products and represent one of the applications of technology that may have a profound impact on wilderness medicine, search and rescue, and tactical medical operations. Of particular interest is the new Blizzard HeatTM Casualty Blanket. I tried out the Blizzard HeatTM Casualty Blanket on a cold Idaho morning, laying out the bag/blanket in the snow in the mountains. It was 30° F with about an inch of snow on the ground. For test purposes, I was wearing a cotton t-shirt, jogging pants, tennis shoes, and socks. I sealed myself into the bag, pulled the Velcro closure strips together, tightened down the top and bottom drawstrings, and made myself comfortable. The demo bag I used did not have the four moveable large air-activated heating pads installed, but I was very surprised how rapidly I could feel the bag begin to warm up. I had my partner slide a cotton towel under the bag at shoulder level to see what a minimal insulation layer might feel like. It made quite a difference. I spent about 30 minutes in the bag and felt warm. The bag has a full frontal closure, as well as side access with Velcro strips – so we could access almost anywhere that we might need to on a patient.

The article below appears in the January 2009 Issue

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- EMS Magazine, January 2009