"stay awake"

[Bushranger]

It is a common event to be watching a fictional event where the medical person/EMT/Doctor/Nurse tells the patient to stay awake when they are bleeding to death.  Question: Does that really make any difference?  It seems logical that the point where there is not enough blood left to support life is the point where the body will die whether or not the person is awake or not.  So, is it just theater, or not?  If it is a factor, please explain the biological means/reason that it would prevent death.

[keyesrussell]

I would guess they're more trying to get them to keep their eyes open etc. The point being that if they close their eyes and "fall asleep" they'd lack the strength to wake up again. However, in reality I would guess that the effect of this would be minimal to non-existent. There's only so much willpower can accomplish when you're suffering from such a deadly injury to make you bleed to death.

[CharonY]

This trope is based on the occasional finding that people with head trauma could appear lucid shortly after injury but then slip into coma. However, studies have shown that this is a rare event (see e.g. Arbogast et al. 2005 Pediatrics) where only 1.9% of tested children suffering fatal brain injuries appeared lucid. While I am not an MD, I was told that the current recommendation is that after initial assessment (and if the patient appeared lucid) it is fine to let them rest in order to accelerate the healing process.