When a young African-American man dies in the city of Philadelphia, more than half the time there鈥檚 one main reason why, says Scott Charles.
鈥淚t鈥檚 because somebody pointed a gun at him and pulled that trigger. It鈥檚 not because of cancer; it鈥檚 not because of car accidents; it鈥檚 not because of house fires. It鈥檚 because somebody pointed a trigger,鈥 he says.
Charles is at Temple University Hospital. The medical center now offers bystander first-aid training, called Fighting Chance, to give friends and family something to do in the minutes before help arrives.
At 6 o鈥檆lock one evening, kids run around while their parents and neighbors gather in an elementary school cafeteria. There are training stations set up, and at the back a nurse is showing people how stop blood flow from a gunshot wound.
鈥淭he pressure point is located on the inside of the arm,鈥 he explains. 鈥淎nd basically, you鈥檙e going to take your hand and get up underneath the inside of the arm and clamp it down.鈥
Each person takes a turn, taking an old towel or T-shirt and wrapping it around the fake bloody arm tight until help arrives.
Everyone鈥檚 talking, but emergency medicine doctor Tim Bryan鈥檚 voice is the loudest. He鈥檚 a Navy veteran, a former combat medic, and he鈥檚 used to giving commands. A shooting scene is chaotic and frightening, but Bryan says in just two hours of training, people get enough of the basics so they will know how to respond.
鈥淵ou have that 鈥榓ha鈥 moment and people are like, 鈥榃ow, I can do this. I can control the scene. I can remember to call 911 and tell the person to put direct pressure on even if I don鈥檛 do anything else.鈥 And it does make a difference,鈥 he says.
The topic is serious, but the mood isn鈥檛. Alice Kellam, 63, wears a camouflage tracksuit and rhinestone hoop earrings. She鈥檚 chatty and laughs with friends all evening 鈥 except when she talks about her husband, who was murdered in 1990. She doesn鈥檛 have a lot to say about that, except that it was senseless.
鈥淭hey took his sneaks and his hat. That was it,鈥 she says.
Amanda McMacken, a registered nurse at Temple University Hospital, shows North Philadelphia residents how to slow bleeding in trauma victims. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)
Many people in this North Philadelphia neighborhood have a story about someone and remember a moment when they felt helpless.
Louise Smith (鈥淓verybody calls me Miss Midge,鈥 she says) is a perpetual volunteer, and at the big summer block party at 12th and Cambria, she鈥檚 the lady who hands out the flavored water ice.
鈥淎bout a year ago, we seen a shooting around here,鈥 she says. 鈥淚t was a shame the two boys died right on the sidewalk, there wasn鈥檛 nobody there to help them.鈥
A severely injured person can bleed to death in less than 10 minutes. But it can take much longer for police to arrive and calm the situation, so the trainers teach the class how to move a victim away from danger and flying bullets.
Registered nurse Maureen Quigg explains how to do a two-person lift-and-carry.
鈥淭he knee closest to the victim is down and the other knee is up, and that鈥檚 what you stand up with, the power from your legs and not your back,鈥 she says.
Quigg reassures the smaller women that they indeed can help a 200-pound person.
Registered nurse Danielle Vetter demonstrates use of a tourniquet. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)
鈥淚f it鈥檚 someone you care about or in a situation where there鈥檚 a lot of activity, your adrenaline is going 鈥 you have all this extra energy, you have all this extra power,鈥 she says. 鈥淎nd if you focus on doing it and doing it the right way, you can lift someone you鈥檇 never think you could lift, and you can do it without hurting yourself.鈥
Advocates say learning first-aid skills to stop bleeding is the essential step in bystander education, not unlike learning CPR or making sure a defibrillator is nearby to jump-start someone鈥檚 heart. The federal Department of Homeland Security provides an introduction to these lifesaving techniques online in its program.
At the end of the evening, the trainers stage a minidrama to test the group.
Bryan sets the chaotic scene and calls out directions. One person is the victim. There鈥檚 a pretend shooter.
鈥淩emember, you can ask somebody: 鈥楬elp me control the scene.鈥 That鈥檚 good,鈥 he calls out.
Charles helped develop the first-aid education program after a local resident came to him to complain that he was sick and tired of hearing about young men who died before getting to the ER.
鈥淎s we wait for laws to be changed, many people are going to find themselves on the wrong end of a gun,鈥 Charles says. 鈥淲hile those things are certainly important, we have to put the power in people鈥檚 hands to address this issue.鈥
The goal is to saturate one neighborhood with people who have basic lifesaving skills. About 250 people have been trained so far.
This story is part of a reporting partnership with NPR, WHYY鈥檚 health show and .