How to respond to an emergency: First Aid skills get put into action again
Whilst on the way to taking the kids pre-school yesterday I saw a group of three people who appeared to be looking for something on the ground at the edge of the village field by the car park. ‘Oh look’ I said to the children ‘that man must have lost something very small and he is lying down and looking for it on the ground’…
Being an inquisitive/nosey/do-good type I swung the car into a space close to the strange looking trio and realised on closer inspection that the man lying on the cold, wet Autumnal ground was in pain. He was on his front but was holding his head a distance from the ground. I told the chidren that I was going to see what was happening and grabbed the handy pillows and blankets I keep in the car for the kids. I popped one under the injured gent’s head and wrapped him as best I could including his head in blankets to try and conserve some heat.
In first aid classes one thing they keep hammering home is the statement you should announce when stepping in to help with any kind of incident. ‘Hello I’m a trained first aider and I will help you’. This helps to stop everyone on the scene from panicking even though you might be thinking ‘Oh no I can’t remember anything I learned in that first aid class’ it promotes an air of knowing what procedures to follow rather than urgent chaos.
I issued my (slightly pompous sounding) statement and the two other folks fell upon me with gratitude for coming over as they didn’t know what to do. I quickly ascertained that no-one had phoned for an ambulance. This is another important fact I had managed to remember - as a first aider helping someone who is injured you are simply helping them to be safe, to reduce the risk of further injury and to preserve their life UNTIL THE EMERGENCY SERVICES ARRIVE (hence the term *first* aid I guess) but this critical assistance you give before the ambulance and or fire brigade turn up can mean the difference between life and death.
The chap who was on the floor was called Ron and he begrudgingly told me he was 74 and that he wasn’t very good at falling (who is?). He kept saying ‘I’ll be alright in a minute’ but luckily the woman who took the details on the phone as we requested an ambulance backed me up by getting me to bossily telling him he wasn’t allowed to move (despite the other folks helping suggesting he should see whether he could wiggle various limbs).
Poor Ron. He was most worried about his ancient dog Ben who he’d been walking with before he fell so I dispatched one of the bystanders to go and tell his wife what had happened. She eventually arrived in her car and popped the dog inside.
I didn’t stay much longer than necessary when the paramedics arrived but as I wanted my blankets back I had to wait until they rolled him over and did an assessment of his injuries. It looked to me that he’d broken his arm or shoulder and he was in agony but hopefully not in shock due to the fact we’d kept him warm and calm and got the ambulance out quickly.
It reminded me that injuries can happen to anyone at the most unexpected of times and it really does pay to know how to respond to an emergency effectively. Those of us who are responsible for the welfare of children and/or babies should really be given some basic literature to keep in an obvious place for those horrendous times when they choke, burn themselves, swallow something they shouldn’t, get something in their eye or lose consciousness. As the adult in charge it must be appalling to not know what to do when first aid is needed.
There are loads of courses available but I found this helpful page from the BBC which has interactive learning as well as local course finder. I’ve been refreshing my somewhat rusty knowledge on how to check that someone is breathing if they are unconciouss, what are the first three assesments to make at the scene of any accident and more. Fingers crossed that I’ll never have to use any of these skills again.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/first_aid_action/
October 25th, 2008 at 12:16 am
I think it is very important to be prepared in most of everything that possible happen especially for the emergencies. Wherever we are, there will be always an emergency happen, and we dont know when will it happen. And being prepared and have the things or having emergency kit that we possible need whatever type of emergency will happen, is a clever thing that we do.