Page 111 - JSOM Spring 2024

Tell Them Yourself: It’s Not Your Day to Die

Frank Butler, Kevin O’Connor, Jeff Butler. Tell Them Yourself: It’s Not Your Day to Die. Breakaway Media; May 2024.
304 pages, hardcover. ISBN: 79-8-9902257-0-1.

Review by Scott P. Graverson, PhD

That men do not learn very much from the lessons of his- TCCC isn’t just for SOF . . . it’s for everyone. The authors explain
tory is the most important of all the lessons of history. that TCCC concepts apply to conventional forces, first responders,
—Aldous Huxley Special Weapons and Tactics teams, wilderness medicine, austere
medicine . . . you name it. Foreign militaries have adopted and ac-
tively use TCCC principles in combat and training scenarios—Israel,
n Tell Them Yourself: It’s Not Your Day to Die, authors Frank Canada, the United Kingdom, China, NATO, and Ukraine have all
Butler, Kevin O’Connor, and Jeff Butler quote—and stress—an benefited from adopting TCCC protocols. The authors detail ac-
IArmy Ranger truism: “Lessons Learned aren’t really Lessons counts of lives saved—both civilian and first responders—because
Learned—unless you actually learn the lesson.” In no other pro- cities like Chicago, Houston, Cincinnati, and Denver had simply
fession does this adage have more dire consequences than in med- issued tourniquets and provided critical training to their officers.
icine; the outcomes are literally life or death. As the authors of
this book document, medical science has walked back medical You can’t have the good and the bad without the ugly. The authors
advances—from using tourniquets to control bleeding to using aren’t afraid to expose the failings of TCCC, but they do so with
fresh whole blood as a battlefield remedy. This book focuses not purpose. To know what one needs to fix, one must expose the bro-
on placing blame on those who repealed best practices in favor of ken, and who better know this than the practitioners on the front
other solutions but on documenting the fight to correct those inac- lines of the fight? The authors give clear commentary on some
curacies and the path to codify and continuously improve those aspects of TCCC that didn’t work out very well, with the
practices solely for the benefit of the patient and not sole purpose of improving processes and implementing
the convenience or benefit of the practitioner. change for the benefit of our combat forces.
The authors begin with Dr. Bob Mabry giving his In the words of Sir Winston Churchill, “The longer
first-hand account of what it was like to fast-rope you can look back, the farther you can look for-
into an active combat scenario: treating casualties ward.” Anyone who has spent a minute in SOF med-
while enemy combatants aggressively attack you. icine—or medicine in general—will benefit from
At the time, Mabry was a Sergeant First Class in the reading this book. The authors are purposeful in
U.S. Army Special Forces, an “18-Delta” in military their prose and diligent in researching and sourc-
parlance. The scenario: the infamous Battle of Mog- ing this book. They are the experts because they
adishu that occurred 3–4 October 1993. One of the were there and made it happen. The forwards
primary takeaways from that battle, at least from the in this book, from Admiral William McRaven,
medical perspective, was a compelling need to rethink former Commander of U.S. Special Operations Command,
every aspect of combat casualty care, from the equip- Joint Special Operations Command, and architect of the Osama
ment we send into the field with the medics to how battlefield and bin Laden raid, and Vice Admiral Richard Carmona, 17th Surgeon
in-garrison medical treatment facilities respond. General of the United States, testify to the veracity of this book.
Knowing where you came from directs your path forward; know-
The opening of the book provides the backdrop for the gene- ing the character of the people who went before you gives you the
sis of the Committee on Tactical Combat Casualty Care and the peace of mind to know you are doing the right thing. This book
evolution and implementation of Tactical Combat Casualty Care delivers those insights and perspective.
(TCCC), first in Army Special Forces, then in the “Big” Army, and
ultimately in all branches of the U.S. Military. The authors were This reviewer learned more about the SOF, SOF medicine, and the
on the front lines of the battle to implement sweeping changes people who made TCCC happen reading this book than in the
in combat medicine, citing success after success in reducing pre- 30-plus years he spent in and around the military. Admittedly, this
ventable combat deaths—the ultimate goal of TCCC. One can reviewer spent the majority of that time in the Communications—
imagine that implementing radical change is usually met with Computer profession, but if the authors can engage and teach an
skepticism and great resistance. The battle for TCCC was no “IT guy” their stories, lessons, and adventures, then every SOF
different; the authors document the battles they fought within medical practitioner will find value in this book. This reviewer
Special Operations Forces (SOF) and with other governmental highly recommends Tell Them Yourself: It’s Not Your Day to Die
agencies. To be sure, no agency is fond of an “outsider” treading to anyone in tactical medicine—from the greenest medic to the
on their territory, and the authors detail the resistance they faced most experienced surgeon. There is something for everyone in this
and overcame. true, historical account of TCCC.

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