What Are First Aid 101 Basic Skills
For everything you need to know about First Aid 101, the following is a super brief, ultra-general guide for major situations in an emergency while waiting for an emergency services responder to take over treatment. These are the bare-bones basics. At all times, use DRSABCD. If you don’t know what that is, it is time you booked and took a First Aid Course!
What Are The Basic First Aid Procedures
Danger: are you or are they in immediate danger larger than the injury? (Car smoking, something catching fire, live electricity wires etc.).
Response: Call out to them for a response of any kind. Look and listen carefully. They might be unable to move limbs due to paralysis or talk due to having their mouth blocked via a blockage of any type, including blood, mud or dirt or have a blocked airway from choking on an item.
Send for help. Call 000 or point to and direct a specific person to do so if others are present. Pointing to the person prevents confusion, and everyone then knows who is responsible for calling the emergency services. It has happened that no one called for help because they all presumed each other had done so in the confusion.
Begin CPR By Establishing ABCs
- Check and monitor if the airway is clear. Ensure the person can breathe or receive rescue breaths.
- If there is a heartbeat but no breathing, commence rescue breaths only. Rescue breaths is the new terminology for Mouth-to-Mouth resuscitation.
- Commence CPR and Chest compressions at 30:2 ratio. 30 compressions for every 2 breaths if there is no heartbeat and no breathing. If there is breathing, only chest compression needs to be given. The ideal rate of compression is 2 per second. (100-120 beats per minute where possible.)
How To Stop Bleeding First Aid 101
Place a clean cloth, a clean sanitary pad or a towel on the wound and apply firm pressure to the site. Ideally, secure the compress in place using a bandage, but anything that will keep the pressure on and hold it in place, like a belt, scarf, or twine, will work. Call emergency services in Australia on 000. Keep the person seated or lying on the ground and reassure them help is on the way.
How To Treat A Bullet Wound First Aid 101
Apply strong pressure over the wound site: If blood is coming out of a hole on both sides, place extra firm pressure on both sides. Don’t be afraid to really lean hard on the wound for heavy bleeding. Call emergency services. In Australia, call 000. Limb wounds can be controlled using a tourniquet if an artery has been hit. Otherwise, direct pressure only.
How To Treat A Broken Bone First Aid 101
Create a makeshift splint and secure either side of the broken limb to stop movement. Call emergency services on 000 in Australia or attend your local emergency room for x-rays and a professional assessment. A cast of some kind will likely be required for 6-8 weeks as the break heals. If the broken bone has come through the flesh, place a ring bandage around the bone sticking out, splint above and below the break, control bleeding around the ring bandage but not directly over the exposed bone and get to a hospital or emergency treatment centre ASAP!
https://www.healthywa.wa.gov.au/Articles/F_I/First-aid-for-fractures-and-dislocations
How To Treat A Head Injury First Aid 101
Call 000 or visit an emergency room for a follow-up assessment. Control any bleeding using firm pressure. Check pupils to see if both pupils are equal and reactive to light entering them. Fixed or dilated (wide) pupils that do not contract with light exposure mean they need immediate emergency treatment in a hospital. They have sustained a serious concussion or serious brain injury.
Video: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/head-injury
How To Treat A Burn First Aid 101
Place the burn site under cool running water for 20 minutes. If the site can’t be placed directly under running water, cold, wet compresses can be placed on the burn, and water tipped gently over the compress covering the burn site for 20 minutes. Call 000 if the burn is larger than a fifty-cent piece or is deeper than a surface burn and turning black as soon as possible. Surface burns can have specific ‘burn creams’ liberally applied and follow-up treatment if blisters appear.
How To Treat A Drug Overdose First Aid 101
Call 000. Lay the victim on their left side to prevent aspiration. Monitor for breathing and a heartbeat. Commence rescue breaths only if they stop breathing or CPR if their heart stops beating. Most overdose people will be unconscious and have an accelerated heart rate of over 120 beats per minute due to the stimulant they took, likely having an amphetamine base. The heart is highly likely to stop beating either from a heart attack caused by the abnormally high heart rate or via the brain shutting down all of the body’s organs and systems due to the effects of the drug chemicals on the brain.
If you have some on hand, administering Narcan immediately will begin to counteract and neutralise the drug’s effects.
Video: https://www.ohsu.edu/oregon-poison-center/drug-poisoning-and-overdose
First Aid Course Experts
If you have never taken a First Aid Course, you should seriously consider treating yourself and your family to gain lifesaving skills and knowledge. You never know what is around the corner or when you may need to provide First Aid.
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