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So of course this all comes back to wound ballistics and the desired results of shooting someone:
1) injuring them so they 'should' survive
2) injuring them so they likely won't survive in the long run (alive to get to trauma center and have us try to save them)
3) incapacitating them so the 'threat' is neutralized (LEO world)
a) instantly/damn close to it; no further potential harm can be done by bad guy to self/LEO/public/etc. within seconds of being shot
b) not instantly...potential harm can still be done; pull trigger a few more times, push detonator button a few times, run around the corner/next room/etc. then collapse and die or be able to be resuscitated/operated on and live to see a court room/jail cell/etc.
4) killing them (military world)
So, shot placement, (rules of engagement), type of ammunition and desired/ordered outcome are all a factor. The combination of these 3 are beyond this response but let it be stated that shot placement and ammo type (caliber, characteristics, etc) are the 2 critical factors and the type of ammo can be a larger factor IF a less than ideal shot placement issue is presented to the shooter.
I have dealt with every part of the human body being shot and if you recall the handgun statistics I have posted in the past, only 62% of head shots end in the death of the person.....38% do not and that is with shot placement being right on, so ammo characteristics do make up for the rest of the potential. I don't have rifle stats......but I have to believe more 'should' be dying but I can not support that with data. If anyone has that data please share........
ss
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'Revel in action, translate perceptions into instant judgements, and these into actions that are irrevocable, monumentous and dreadful - all this with lightning speed, in conditions of great stress and in an environment of high tension:what is expected of "us" is the impossible, yet we deliver just that.
(adapted from: Sherwin B. Nuland, MD, surgeon and author: The Wisdom of the Body, 1997 )
Education is the anti-ignorance we all need to better treat our patients. ss, 2008.
The blade is so sharp that the incision is perfect. They don't realize they've been cut until they're out of the fight: A Surgeon Warrior. I use a knife to defend life and to save it. ss (aka traumadoc)
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