After activating your Emergency Action Plan and having consent, what should you do for a swimmer with a bleeding wound?

Applying gauze and direct pressure is the most appropriate response for a swimmer with a bleeding wound after the Emergency Action Plan has been activated and consent obtained. This approach focuses on controlling the bleeding effectively. Direct pressure helps to stem the flow of blood and can often stop the bleeding, allowing for a more stable condition until professional medical help arrives.

Using gauze provides both a barrier to contamination and assists in clot formation when applied properly. It's important to maintain the pressure consistently without frequently checking the wound, as this could disrupt any clotting and exacerbate bleeding.

While other methods like applying a tourniquet may be appropriate in specific situations with severe, life-threatening bleeding from a limb, it is generally not the first course of action for less severe wounds, and proper training is required to apply it effectively. Cleaning the wound with water or leaving it alone would not be adequate immediate interventions, as they do not adequately address the need to control bleeding.