First aid includes many actions that you perform in the proper order. First, the person providing first aid should take care of their safety, then of third parties and the place of the incident. The scope of actions will vary depending on the nature of the situation.
The second action is to check the condition of the injured person. For this purpose, typical vital functions and injuries are assessed. Next, help should be called – use the support of the gathered people and call for the emergency services. The person providing aid performs rescue actions that are adequate to their abilities and depend on the injured person's condition. If necessary, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is performed.
First aid
involves several standard elements: protecting the life of the injured person, the observer, and the rescuer, ensuring that the accident scene is safe, providing pain relief, and preventing the deterioration of the condition.
A situation that requires you to provide help may occur in various circumstances. Before approaching a lying person, you should take care of your safety. Therefore, it is significant to consciously assess the situation to see if there is any threat to the person wanting to provide help.
An example of potentially dangerous circumstances is someone lying next to broken power cables. It is not known whether they have been electrocuted, and if a rescuer approaches, it will not be a threat to them either.
If there is no threat to us and we see a lying person in unusual circumstances, e.g., during a walk in the park, it is best to immediately start calling for help, even before assessing the person's condition. If there is someone else in the area, they will come running, and their help will be valuable. Next, you should approach and check their consciousness.
Stand on the head side and shake the person lying on the shoulders, asking if they can hear you. It is not recommended to do this on the legs side because if the person lying on the ground is conscious, they may get scared and hit you.
If there is no reaction, you should consider the person unconscious and proceed to assess their breathing. If they do react, you should determine what happened and, depending on what you find out, provide help or call an ambulance.
If the person found does not respond to our calls, they are probably unconscious, and then it is necessary to check if they are breathing. To do this, you should open the airway by tilting the head back (in the case of a person lying on their back).
Next, you should place your cheek against the injured person's mouth and look at the chest. Thanks to this, several senses are used to assess breathing – sight, touch, and hearing. If you do not feel the breath on your cheek, do not hear breathing, and do not see the chest movement for 10 seconds, then it should be assumed that such a person is not breathing, and chest compressions should be started.
However, if the person is breathing, it is advisable to call an ambulance and place the person in a stable lateral position.
If the injured person is unconscious and not breathing, immediately start CPR. Start by performing 30 compressions in the center of the chest at a rate of 100-120 compressions per minute. Then, move on to 2 rescue breaths. Continue continuous action in the scheme of 30 compressions and 2 breaths. You can refrain from giving breaths if you are concerned about your safety. Then, keep compressing the chest.
Perform the above actions until the ambulance arrives, until the threat occurs, until the injured person loses strength, or until you notice signs of circulation in the injured person. Do not be afraid of breaking a rib or sternum—it will not worsen the injured person's condition. Repeat the cycle until help arrives, the situation changes or signs of circulation appear.
For a child not breathing, start with 5 rescue breaths, then 30 compressions (15 for trained individuals), followed by 2 breaths. Repeat the cycle.
If the person is unconscious but breathing, or conscious but breathing, ensure a clear airway and monitor their condition.
For bleeding, apply pressure with a dressing and bandage. Don't waste time identifying the type of bleeding; apply the same first aid. If possible, wear latex gloves.
Be careful with blood. You can catch severe diseases through contact with it. If you don't know the injured person, it's safer to assume that they may be a carrier:
Instruct the injured person to sit on the ground with their head tilted forward. They need to pinch the nostrils with two fingers for 10 minutes (if the injured person takes anticoagulants for about 20 minutes). If blood runs down the injured person’s throat – instruct them to spit it out (not swallow it).
The injured person requires an urgent visit to an ENT specialist in a specialist office or hospital if:
After sustaining an injury, it is worth cooling the sore spot. If you do not have any pharmacy products, a compress will provide relief. Remember not to apply them directly to the skin surface if you use a bottle, can, or ice cubes. First, you must wrap the object in a material layer so as not to damage the epidermis. If possible, hold the limb above the heart for a few to a dozen or so minutes to reduce the area of the bruise. It will reduce swelling and the formation of hematoma.
Sometimes, in addition to the bruise, there is pain and deformation of the joint, or the pain lasts a very long time. In such a situation, it is worth seeing a doctor, who will check whether there has been a more severe injury. It is not worth underestimating such symptoms because a muscle tear or joint damage are serious health problems and should be treated by a professional.
It is worth remembering that contusions, hematomas, and bruises do not threaten health or life. However, they can be bothersome due to the sharp pain and bruises that remain visible on the skin for some time. Immediate first aid to a person with a contusion accelerates tissue regeneration and limits the area occupied by hematomas.
When providing first aid to a burn victim, we always remember to ensure the rescuer's safety first. The energy source should be cut off, and the patient should be provided with medical aid in a safe place.
Cool the wound with water for at least 15 minutes and secure it with a sterile dressing (do not apply any lubricating substances to burns). Remove clothing and jewelry from the burnt limbs as soon as possible because the injury causes swelling to grow.
In severe burns, when the patient is unconscious and there is a suspicion of a burn of the respiratory tract, an ambulance should be called.
Lay the burning person down because movement fans the flames, extinguish with a blanket, douse with water, or roll on the ground. First aid for a burn patient significantly impacts the prognosis and course of treatment. Cooling the burn wound in the first few minutes after the injury is particularly important for further healing. As a result of cooling with water, the thermal energy of the burnt area is reduced, which protects the wound from deepening. The patient's age and concomitant diseases are of great importance in treating a burn victim.
First, encourage the injured person to cough. If the foreign body has not been coughed up, lean the injured person forward and give five vigorous blows between their shoulder blades. If this does not work, do the Heimlich press. Stand behind the injured person, lean them forward slightly, and clasp your hands on their upper abdomen (between the navel and the sternum). Then, perform 5 vigorous hugs. It increases the pressure in the injured person's abdominal cavity, making removing the foreign body much easier. Perform the hugs alternately with blows to the back until the injured person coughs up the foreign body.
In this case, you must first ensure your safety. Therefore, do not approach the injured person before disconnecting the power source. If you know which device caused the electric shock, disconnect it from the power supply. Otherwise, turn off all fuses.
Then, check the injured person's condition. If they are unconscious and not breathing, start CPR. If they are conscious and breathing, place them in the recovery position. Alternatively, you can apply a dressing to the burned area. In any case, call for professional medical help and stay with the injured person until the ambulance arrives.
In addition to knowing the above actions, the most significant thing when providing first aid is to stay as calm and rational as possible. This will help you not panic and certainly do everything you can to help the injured.
Ask other people to help the emergency medical team reach the injured person. It can be done by:
The most significant principle in rescue is safety. Before providing first aid, remember to use personal protective equipment (disposable gloves) if possible and to secure the incident scene.
Always ensure the safety of the injured party, rescuers, and witnesses before assisting at the scene of an incident. If there is an incident on the road, first put on a reflective vest and disposable gloves. Before approaching the injured party, place a warning triangle at a distance as specified by the Road Traffic Code.
If you are allergic to latex, use disposable gloves made of a different material, such as nitrile.
Safety comes first. If the scene is dangerous for rescuers (chemical contamination, electric shock, fire, crime scene, construction disaster), call the emergency number immediately and wait for the rescue services to arrive. Use disposable gloves whenever possible when providing first aid.
The blood and secretions of the injured person are potentially infectious. Most infectious diseases, such as hepatitis B and C or AIDS, are transmitted through contact with infected blood.
Human skin is a natural barrier to viruses and bacteria, but sometimes, minor cuts within it allow microorganisms to enter the body. Therefore, it is important to use disposable gloves.
The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) can cause a disease that reduces the body's resistance to infections known as AIDS. The body of a person with AIDS cannot cope with, for example, pneumonia or simple strains of flu. Not everyone who carries HIV has AIDS, but it is a source of infection, which can happen as a result of contact with contaminated blood or through sexual contact with an infected person. Infection usually does not occur during ordinary everyday contact with a carrier.
Tuberculosis bacteria are transmitted through droplets, especially when coughing or sneezing. The source of infection is only people with active tuberculosis of the lungs or throat.
Whenever possible, use disposable gloves when providing first aid. These gloves protect your hands from contact with blood and other body fluids.
If you are allergic to latex, use disposable gloves made of a different material. If the injured person is bleeding, use protective goggles, which protect the eyes from contact with blood and other body fluids.
Use masks that cover the nose and mouth.
Do not throw personal protective equipment exposed to blood or body fluids in the trash. Please give it to the ambulance staff or place it in an appropriately marked waste container. Always wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water after providing first aid.
In the event of exposure to potentially infectious material, after properly removing the gloves, wash very thoroughly and rinse the contaminated skin area with a strong stream of water. If you do not have immediate access to soap and water, try to do so as soon as possible. Immediately contact your primary care physician or inform the emergency medical team about the exposure to infectious material.
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