What should you do if a tourniquet is applied?

Monitoring the casualty and looking for other injuries after applying a tourniquet is crucial for several reasons. Once a tourniquet is in place, it serves its primary purpose of controlling life-threatening bleeding from a limb by occluding blood flow. It is vital to ensure that the casualty remains stable and that other injuries are identified, as they may require additional treatment.

Assessing the overall condition of the casualty allows for a comprehensive understanding of their injuries and aids in prioritizing medical interventions. This involves checking for signs of shock, assessing the airway, breathing, and circulation, and looking for other potential injuries that could be present.

It is important to avoid removing or loosening the tourniquet, as this could lead to the re-establishment of blood flow and exacerbate the bleeding, putting the casualty at further risk. Additionally, applying additional dressings over the tourniquet is usually unnecessary and may complicate the situation, as the tourniquet itself is designed to control the bleeding effectively. Therefore, monitoring the casualty's condition is the best course of action to ensure continued care and prepare for further medical intervention as needed.