Program in Saudi Arabia Adopts TraumaMan Simulators From PETA, Stops Using Animals

Thanks to PETA’s donation of four advanced TraumaMan human-patient simulators, the practice of cutting open animals as part of learning how to treat life-threatening injuries in humans will no longer be part of Saudi Arabia’s Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) program. The TraumaMan models, which have arrived at Saudi Arabia’s ATLS National Office, are human surrogates that will prevent 12 to 20 animals each year from mutilation and death in archaic trauma training drills. Saudi Arabia’s ATLS training historically used sheep and goats who endured invasive procedures as part of human trauma skills practice. Typically, they were anesthetized and cut open to simulate human injuries, such as chest, abdominal, and vascular trauma. After the procedures, the animals were killed. PETA’s donation and the signed formal agreement ensure that every ATLS course in Saudi Arabia, across more than 40 accredited sites, will now adopt humane, modern, animal-free training methods.