FACE First Aid 101: First Aid For Dummies
Ask any emergency services personnel about First Aid for dummies, and they will tell you the most important step to any emergency response is being prepared. It is better to have the skills and not need them than not have the skills and need them.
First Aid For Dummies Prevention
First Aid for dummies prevention is knowing how to stop emergencies before they occur. A simple concept in theory but often easily overlooked in practice.
Accidents are so named because they are not planned events and occur without warning. One cannot predict the future, yet you can prepare for all possible outcomes and hope none of the negative ones happen.
Sudden injury or illness requires immediate First Aid for dummies action. Knowing what to do, how to fix the problem, or who to call for help can be the difference in preventing a minor emergency from escalating into a fatality.
When people are confronted with a situation they don’t understand, panic usually ensues, and they become part of the problem, exacerbating the situation, not part of the solution fixing the situation.
The solution you seek is relatively simple and easy to learn. Basic 101 First Aid for dummies is easy to learn. There are multiple sources, certified and non-certified courses with a wide range of delivery methods available to anyone wishing to learn vital lifesaving First Aid skills thanks to technology.
First Aid For Dummies Alternative Sources
Several useful, information-packed books on the subject of First Aid are available from bookstores and all the usual virtual bookstores online. Some people cannot learn from reading and don’t follow instructions well unless they are physically demonstrated and verbally delivered. Taking a Basic First Aid 101 course gives you the tools you need to save a life.
Video: https://www.verywellhealth.com/basic-first-aid-procedures-1298578
First Aid For Dummies Where To Start
From learning to perform CPR correctly or accident-proofing your home for toddlers, being prepared for any emergency means that should the worst happen, you have the situation covered, the right supplies on hand, and you are prepared to deal with the First Aid situation there and then.
In a Basic 101 First Aid course, you would learn how to identify, triage, treat and evacuate people needing medical attention as the level and severity of the situation calls for. Some of the fundamental basics of First Aid knowledge should include the ability to identify and provide the correct response to:
- Cardiac Arrest
- CPR
- Using an AED machine
- Wounds
- Burns
- Poisoning
- Shock
- Bites, stings, and envenomation
- Choking
- Broken bones
- Head injuries
- Hyperthermia and hypothermia
Certified and nationally recognised training organisations give thorough instructions. The level of detail each problem presents and its corresponding 101 First Aid is conducted using the current medical practices and protocols. Successful completion of a basic First Aid course will give you professional accreditation that lasts three years in Australia but will last you a lifetime.
First Aid skills, once learned, are like riding a bike. You might get rusty without regular use, but you never forget them when you need them!
First Aid For Dummies First Aid Kit
A functioning, well-stocked First Aid kit is one of the most important things to have on hand.
You can buy hundreds of First Aid kits online, and none of them are bad. They will all have the bare basics like a bandage, Band-Aids, tape, gauze, gloves and sterile water solutions for flushing eyes and wounds.
However, you need to stop and assess what your chosen kit requires and either buy or compile a specific needs First Aid Kit, as no two needs will be the same.
Commercial First Aid kits are fully packed and ready to use for the home, the office, or industries with specific job requirements that other kits would not need to have as a basic 101 model.
Unless you are looking to prep for doomsday or seek a workplace First Aid kit with more supplies than your basic content, you will not need an industry-specific First Aid Kit.
However, if you find kitchen accidents frequently occur, having a dedicated burns and cuts First Aid kit in easy reach would be a better option than a basic First Aid kit that lacks the necessary items needed to treat burns.
Home First Aid For Dummies First Aid Kit Essentials
Your home First Aid kit should contain items that treat the things you and your family might encounter daily or on a regular basis.
For example
- Sports injuries and accidents will require ice/heat packs, strapping material, and pain relief.
- Cough, colds, and sore throat medications.
- CPR and artificial respiration require ventilation masks for all sizes. (One size does not fit all.)
- Emergency contact details and next of kin in case you are the person needing help.
- Band-Aids in assorted sizes, adhesive elastic bandages, crepe bandages, a triangle bandage to use as a sling, or a ring bandage for open fractures, etc.
- Several forms of adhesive tape. (They all do different things and have varying strengths)
- Splits for broken fingers and air splints for broken bones.
- Braces for wrists, knees, ankles, and back etc.
- Sterile solutions for cleaning wounds.
- Dedicated eyewash bottle and solution.
- Cotton balls and cotton swabs to assist with cleaning wounds.
- Sterile gauze packs
- Medical scissors
- Tweezers
- Some form of antibacterial cream or solution
- Isopropyl alcohol
- Disposable masks and gloves
- A packet of barley sugar or jellybeans
- Stethoscope
- Some forms of pain relief and febrile agents, i.e. Paracetamol and prescription-strength analgesics like Panadeine Forte, deal with real pain control.
- An AED device (if one can be afforded) is also a worthy lifetime investment but is not an item for 101 level, merely a lifesaving device that every household should ideally invest in where the cost can be justified or the need prevails.
Being prepared with the basic First Aid Kit will allow you to build up your supplies over time and deliver peace of mind. Regardless of how you get your knowledge, the knowledge you gain from learning First Aid allows you to rest assured that you have taken the precautions to guard against but be ready to treat any accidents and mishaps that arise.
Are you looking for a video demonstration of ‘hands-only CPR’ with a twist? This British commercial will take you down the rabbit hole and into a tongue-in-cheek satire ad campaign for chest-only CPR with lifesaving measures. Please remember that in Australia, the emergency number is 000, not 999 or 911.
FACE First Aid Course Experts
Everyone can learn new skills no matter what their age. When it comes to First Aid for dummies, having even the basics covered will be enough to ensure that you can provide First Aid in an emergency that might save a person’s life.
If you have never taken a First Aid course, please visit our website and read our FACE Blog page, where you can find over 100 topics across all medical fields that will offer you motivation, inspiration and general knowledge that will assist you in learning the skills required to save a life.
FACE offers several courses and has a trainer near you. If you are so remote that a trainer can not be sourced near you, check out the new ZOOM course for remote area certification in First Aid and CPR.
