As a Navy corpsman in Vietnam, Dave Hammond learned firsthand that inexperienced corpsmen seldom survived long under battlefield stress, leaving the wounded to medically untrained GIs. Soon he realized that stress crippled stateside emergency care, too, because untrained civilians were nearly useless when faced with medical emergencies. Training didn't always help either, he discovered, because students quickly forgot the first aid they learned in class.

The issue holds major importance because unintentional injuries kill more Americans between the ages of one and 44 than any other cause, although less than five percent of U.S. households are equipped with first aid kits. After 12 years in the Navy, Hammond vowed to use his experience as a corpsman and emergency medical trainer to reverse this trend.

During a two-decade crusade, he created intelligent first-aid kits that almost anyone can use - even under enormous stress. Borrowing techniques used in computer graphics and film making, he designed kits coded with colors and icons to guide caregivers in nearly every emergency. Individual packs contain supplies and color-coded picture cards resembling storyboards that provide easy-to-follow instructions for each specific injury - from breathing problems to bleeding.

After testing his system on oil rigs, Hammond's firm, DLH, Inc., began marketing it to industry. Patent approval followed, as did endorsements by the American Red Cross and the National Safety Commission, which writes the kit's instructions. Kits are now used by major organizations including Hertz, Marriott, CBS, Disney and the U.S. Postal Service. Product lines cover specific industries, and consumer marketing is now under way. A line for pets is under design.

Hammond holds a master's degree in education from George Washington University. He is the author of the 1974 book, A Guide to Medical Care in Isolated Environments.