A Message to Our Community: Our Commitment to Safety
At Bolivar R-1 Schools, the safety and well-being of our students and staff are our highest priority. To enhance our preparedness for medical emergencies, our district has adopted new protocols in response to Missouri bill SB 68 and the Stop the Bleed awareness campaign. This proactive measure equips our schools with the resources and training necessary to respond effectively to severe bleeding injuries.
 
Understanding the "Stop the Bleed" Initiative
Uncontrolled bleeding is the leading cause of preventable death from trauma. In emergency situations, it can take several minutes for first responders to arrive. The "Stop the Bleed" program empowers bystanders to act as immediate first responders, providing life-saving care in those critical moments. By training our staff and equipping our schools, we are building a safer environment for everyone.
 
What This Means for Our Schools
To comply with the new state mandate, we've implemented the following measures:

• Bleeding Control Kits: We have placed bleeding control kits in strategic, easily accessible locations throughout all our schools. These kits are stocked with essential supplies, including tourniquets, gauze, and gloves.
• Staff Training: Our staff will receive comprehensive training on how to use these kits and apply life-saving bleeding control techniques. The training focuses on three key actions: applying direct pressure to a wound, packing a wound with gauze or clothing, and applying a tourniquet when appropriate.
• Developed Protocols: We have developed clear protocols for responding to traumatic blood loss, ensuring a coordinated and swift response in an emergency.

We are proud to take these steps to strengthen our emergency response capabilities and provide a safer environment for our students and staff. We believe that empowering our school community with these skills can make a life-saving difference.

Traumatic Blood Loss Protocol

The traumatic blood loss protocol shall: 

1. Require that a bleeding control kit be placed in areas where there is likely to be high traffic or congregation, such as auditoriums, cafeterias, or gymnasiums, and areas where risk of injury may be elevated, including vocational classes such as woodworking or automotive classes, in each school building in an easily accessible location of such areas to be determined by local emergency medical services personnel.
2. Include bleeding control kits in the emergency plans of each school building, including the presentation and use of the bleeding control kits in all drills and emergencies; 
3. Require each school building to designate a school nurse or school health care provider or, if no school nurse or school health care provider is available, a school personnel member, who shall obtain appropriate training annually in the use of a bleeding control kit including, but not limited to:

• The proper application of pressure to stop bleeding. 
• The proper application of dressings or bandages. 
• Additional pressure techniques to control bleeding.  
• The correct application of tourniquets; 

4. Require each bleeding control kit in school inventories to be inspected annually to ensure that the materials, supplies, and equipment contained in the bleeding control kit have not expired and that any expired materials, supplies, and equipment are replaced as necessary; and require a bleeding control kit to be restocked after each use and any materials, supplies, and equipment to be replaced as necessary to ensure that the bleeding control kit contains all necessary materials, supplies, and equipment. 
5. The district shall, in collaboration with the United States Department of Homeland Security and the State Department of Public Safety, include requirements in the traumatic blood loss protocol for school personnel to receive annual training in the use of bleeding control kits. 
6. The training requirements shall be satisfied by successful completion and certification under the "STOP THE BLEED" course as promulgated by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma or the American Red Cross. The training requirements may allow online instruction.
7. A bleeding control kit may contain any additional items that: 

• Are approved by emergency medical services personnel, as such term is defined in section 190.600; 
• Can adequately treat an injury involving traumatic blood loss; and 
• Can be stored in a readily available kit. 
• Quantities of each item required to be in a bleeding control kit may be determined by each school district. 

8. The school district shall maintain information regarding the traumatic blood loss protocol and the Stop the Bleed national awareness campaign on the district’s website. 
9. Upon request by a school district or a charter school, the department may, in collaboration with the department of public safety, direct the school district or charter school to resources that are available to provide bleeding control kits to the school district or charter school.