Emergency Medicine

MCW Emergency Medicine - Field EMS Physician Limb Amputation Training and Guidelines

Since the 1970’s, there have been suggestions to develop a formal curriculum and protocol for performing field extremity amputations. Several events since this time, including the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti, have demonstrated the potential need for such a program. However, a curriculum including a didactic lecture and skills demonstration for this high risk, low frequency procedure has never been established. This instructional video serves as a bridge between the prehospital environment and definitive surgical treatment. It includes a brief historical background, indications and equipment necessary for performing the procedure and finally a surgical demonstration of a lower extremity amputation performed on a cadaver.

Field Physician Manual (PDF)

Field Amputation: An Introduction

This video serves as a basic introduction for performing a field amputation. It includes a brief historical background on field amputations, and includes indications and necessary equipment.

Field Upper Extremity Amputation

This video reviews the basic steps for performing a field upper extremity amputation.

Field Lower Extremity Amputation

This video reviews the basic steps for performing a field lower extremity amputation.

Contact Us

M. Riccardo Colella, DO, MPH, FACEP
Associate Professor
Chief, Section of EMS and Disaster Medicine
Departments of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics
The Institute for Health & Equity
Medical College of Wisconsin

9200 W. Watertown Plank Rd., Pavilion 1P
Milwaukee, WI 53226
(414) 805-9923 | (414) 805-6464 (fax)

colella@mcw.edu