It is absolutely worth pointing out that the knife is an instrument of deadly force. Just because it doesn't go 'bang' doesn't mean carrying a knife as a weapon is any less serious then carrying a gun, or that it can be used when a gun couldn't be used.
The situations where you must use a knife to defend yourself outside of the home are vanishingly unlikely, and unless you made a genuine attempt at retreating it's going to be real hard for the outside observer to support your self-defense claim.
I'd really go with something non-lethal as the first option before resorting to a knife.
Okay, let's address this.
1. Yes, using any knife will be considered deadly force unless (potentially) it's used with a pommel strike, which is unlikely with a very small knife.
2. Why wouldn't
anyone make a real effort to retreat before employing a weapon (unless, for instance, protecting a patient who couldn't retreat)?
Why would you even believe such a suggestion is needed?
3. Well- to be blunt-
duh. No sane person, especially one who works in the medical field, wants to be covered with the blood of another person. The alternatives may just be worse.
The ARK may be mine and Sam's creation, but it illustrates a good point. In the sheath, it weights a whole 2 oz. 2 oz. It's hard to find a truly effective defensive tool that weighs as little and is as unobtrusive, and when I was thinking of ways to keep my brothers and sisters in uniform safe when they couldn't have their weapons with them, I couldn't come up with any tool of similar size and weight that I thought would be as effective.
Now, here's a message to the forum, since several of you are on the razor edge of trolling the OP.
Knock it off. You REALLY need to have "do no harm"* spelled out for you? You REALLY have nothing better to do than snipe at someone who just wants to keep himself safe? Do you believe that someone in the medical field has less inherent legal ability to protect him or herself from grievous injury than others? You really think it's better to be injured or killed than potentially face losing your job? What logical disconnect is going on, or are you just bored?
If you just have constructive suggestions, please make them, but several of you seem to be more interested in other agendas, and I don't really understand that. Consider carefully.
*"The patient's well being is the primary consideration." Why would you automatically
assume the threat is a patient? Also, do you even context, bro? Seriously.