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Condition

Bleeding

Updated:

Open wound — apply Bandages before the patient deteriorates. Easy-tier diagnosis with one obvious visual tell.

Overview

Bleeding is one of the most readable conditions in the diagnostic system. The patient shows visible red wound graphics on the model and you have a single dedicated cure (Bandages). Per Fandom's Treatment Item Table, Bleeding falls under the Skin Remedies category alongside Rashes. The visual tell is unmistakable when present — bleeding patients are immediately distinguishable from bruises (which use Medkit) or burns (which use Ointment).

The tight loop here isn't difficulty, it's pace. Bleeding patients tend to cluster during Ambulance Event surges starting Shift 4, where six patients arrive simultaneously and triage matters more than diagnosis. Treat Bleeding patients ahead of stable admissions but behind burning patients (the cascading risk of untreated fires is higher than untreated bleeds).

Video Guide

Diagnosis demo video coming soon.

Visual Symptoms & Cues

  • Visible red wound graphics on the patient model
  • Distress dialogue cues referencing pain or blood
  • Sometimes paired with a clutching-wound animation
  • Distinct from Bruises (purple discolouration, no fluid) and Rashes (red marks, no fluid)

Easy vs Tricky Diagnoses

Pros

  • ✓ Active blood fluid texture — impossible to miss when present
  • ✓ Clear discriminator from other trauma conditions (Bruises, Rashes, Burns)
  • ✓ Distress dialogue confirms diagnosis quickly

Cons

  • ✗ Easy to conflate with Rashes if you only glance at red skin marks — check for fluid
  • ✗ Bruises share the trauma-category but lack the fluid texture
  • ✗ Wrong items (Medkit/Ointment) fail without progressing the cure

At a Glance

At a Glance

Cure
Bandages
Difficulty
easy
First appears
Shift 1

How to Diagnose and Treat

Diagnose first — confirm active bleeding via the fluid texture on the patient model. Distress dialogue is a secondary confirmation. Once confirmed, pull Bandages from the standard treatment cabinet (free, available from shift start) and apply directly to the wound site. The condition resolves on application.

Do not substitute: Bandages are bleeding-specific. Per the trauma-treatment triangle established in /wiki/items/medkit and /wiki/items/ointment:

- Bleeding (active fluid) → Bandages

- Bruises (discolouration) → Medkit

- Rashes/Burns (red marks) → Ointment

Wrong-item application doesn't progress the cure and may eat your time budget if multiple patients are queued. Worse, per Fandom's Treatment system: wrong treatment on a non-anomaly patient kills the patient and counts as 1 death out of your 3-life run. Diagnostic accuracy matters more than speed.

For ambulance-surge triage: Bleeding patients should be treated AFTER active fires (cascading risk) but BEFORE stable admissions (no per-patient timer). Within the bleeding queue itself, treat the patients with the most prominent fluid texture first — that's the visual cue for advanced bleed-state.

Bandages icon note: per the 2026-06-23 patch documented in /wiki/items/bandages, the bandage cross icon was changed from red to green for Geneva Convention compliance. Visual change only; the mechanic and use case are unchanged.

Patch History

No documented balance changes to the Bleeding condition. The associated treatment item (Bandages) received a 2026-06-23 cosmetic update — cross icon changed from red to green for Geneva Convention compliance. Mechanic unchanged.

Frequently Asked Questions

What treats Bleeding?
Bandages — single-condition cure. See /wiki/items/bandages for the item-side details including the 2026-06-23 icon update.
How do I tell Bleeding from Bruises?
Fluid presence is the discriminator. Bleeding shows active blood fluid texture; Bruises shows discoloured (purple/blue) skin patches without fluid. The fluid is the key cue.
What happens if I apply Medkit to a Bleeding patient?
Wrong-treatment penalty per Fandom — patient dies, counts as 1 death out of your 3-life run. Medkit is for Bruises, not Bleeding.
When do Bleeding patients first appear?
Shift 1 onwards. Bleeding is in the default condition pool from the opening shift.
How do I prioritise Bleeding during Ambulance Events?
After active fires (cascading risk), before stable admissions (no timer). Within the bleeding queue, treat the most prominent fluid-texture cases first — that's the advanced bleed-state cue.
Why did Bandages change colour?
The 2026-06-23 patch changed the bandage cross icon from red to green for Geneva Convention compliance. The red cross is a protected international symbol; the green cross is publicly usable. Mechanic unchanged.
Is Bleeding ever an anomaly tell?
Bleeding itself is a standard patient condition, not an anomaly tell. However, patients requiring more than 4 treatments are classified as anomalies per Fandom — so a Bleeding patient who also presents 3+ other conditions may be an anomaly.

Visible cue, single-item fix

Bleeding is one of the cleanest diagnoses — visible red wound graphics on the patient model are unambiguous. Bandages applied to the wound stops the bleed. There's no diagnostic ambiguity to overthink.

Don't confuse with Bruises

The closest condition by visual is Bruises — both show injury marks on the patient sprite. The distinguishing detail: bleeding shows active red flow; bruises show darker patches without flow. Different items: Bandages for bleeding, Medkit for bruises. Wrong item application fails without progressing the cure.

Why this matters in ambulance waves

Bleeding patients tend to cluster in Ambulance Event surges at Shift 4+. The surge can include 1-3 bleeding patients alongside burning patients and critical timers. Triage them ahead of stable admissions because untreated bleeding ticks toward the lost-patient state — there's no specific timer, but the deterioration is faster than untreated easy-tier conditions.

Sources: Sportskeeda items guide, in-game documentation.