Why is first aid important?

Why is first aid important?

First aid is the initial response given to someone who has been injured or is ill. These initial treatments given to someone who has fallen victim to any injury or ailment could help stabilize them and may even save them the risk of losing their life.

A first aider must be someone who is self-aware, alert, and swift in making split-second decisions. Managing an incident entails a lot. Some basic things one can be aware of while giving first aid to someone else is to make sure that the area in which they are is safe and that there are no external threats to the victim’s life before they proceed to give any sort of treatment. Also, do not overplay your role to act heroic. Note that overdoing what you’re supposed to do could land you into trouble since you’re not a medical professional but only someone who is trying to help. Just do what you can to help and call for professional external support. 

Prioritisations of first aid

• Be swift in accessing a situation but in a calm manner.
• Protect yourself from harm and unforeseen events. Never go to the extent of putting yourself at risk. Seek external support as soon as you can.
• Avoid infecting yourself while treating the victim.
• Make sure to give treatment to the victim as soon as you can.
• Access the depth of the situation and decide quickly on what to do to stabilize the victim.
• Call for professional help or take the victim to a nearby clinic, hospital, or any authorized health care.

How to prepare yourself during a first aid emergency 

Setting yourself forward to undertake a first aid assignment ensures that you prepare yourself too. You have to be in the right state of being before you undertake any task. You have to be emotionally, physically, and psychologically fit. Take a moment to breathe in and breathe out and stay relaxed but attentive. There is also a need for you to have some instant rapport with the victim. It may occur that they would have to provide some information to you but they need to have the sense of feel that they can trust you and it will depend on you to help them have that sense of trust and confidence to open up. 

In some cases, the victim may have been attempting something dumb then they suddenly get struck by the disaster. It may be hard for them to open up about such cases since they may feel it will make them feel stupid. You may need to adopt some diplomacy in your actions and speech to not scare or belittle the victim so that they may not wish to talk. In a situation where the victim appears to be your younger sibling or your child, you may be tempted to scold them while they are still hurt. 😞 It is important that you pull yourself together and help them recover before you later think of scolding them 😃 

The subtle art of staying calm

It’s not easy taking care of a victim without fear. We are all human and it’s natural to get scared when we encounter things we haven’t encountered before but this is where composure is needed the most. As I mentioned earlier, stay nonchalant but swift and be confident when treating a victim. The victim may reject any sort of help you may be trying to give them if they notice you aren’t confident and finesse. It’s therefore important to become more familiar with first aid priorities to know what you’re doing. 

Stay in control 

It’s natural for the body to respond to situations that may arouse fright. He may feel your heart beat faster than usual, your breathing pace increases and you sweat profusely. But wait, don’t panic yet. Remember your victim’s health is the most important at that moment. You may even have thoughts of running away but calm yourself down and you’ll be just fine. Also, the kind of thoughts you have will determine your state. If you have negative thoughts of incompetence, you’re likely to flee and panic whereas if you have positive thoughts of believing in yourself, you’re likely to succeed. Anyway, don’t overplay your role in the name of credit.

Protecting yourself from infection 

It is likely to forget about the fact that you need to protect yourself too when caring for a victim. Imagine contracting an infection while trying to help a victim, that makes you also a victim. Who is to help when this happens? It is important to protect yourself from infection as well as injury. Be cautious to avoid transmitting germs or infection to the victim or vice versa. When treating an infection or injury, be careful enough to avoid coming into direct contact with the victim’s blood. Some viruses such as hepatitis and HIV viruses can be contracted through blood contact so it’s important to be cautious. 

When to seek medical advice 

Be careful not to endanger yourself by being cut by any sharp object such as glass, stainless steel, or knife. It is not completely avoidable though and you may accidentally cut yourself. When this happens, wash the area thoroughly and seek medical help as fast as you can.

To help protect yourself from infection, you can carry protective equipment like:

• Pocket mask, face shield, or helmet.
• Latex-free disposable glove
• Alcohol gets to clean your hands
• Glasses
• Protective clothes
• Boots

Avoiding cross infection 

• Wash your hands and wear gloves. If gloves are not available at the moment, wear a clean plastic bag
• Do not cover cuts on your hands with waterproof dressings 
• Wear protective clothes when dealing with extensive body fluids and wear glasses to protect your eyes
• Dispose of all wastes properly 
• Do not sneeze, breathe, or cough over a wound 
• Do not touch a wound with your bare hands and avoid touching any parts of your clothes that come into contact with the wound 

Through hand washing 

Try to use soap and water to wash your hands thoroughly before and after treatment of the victim if you can. In cases where there’s no water or soap, you can opt for an alcoholic hand sanitizer and rob it over your hands.

How to wash your hands

• Wet your hands under running water and rob some soap into your palm
• Rub the palm of one hand over the other and vice versa
• Interlock the fingers of both hands and work the soap between them
• Rub the back of the fingers of one hand against the other and do the same for the other hand 
• Rub the thumb of one hand in the palm of your other hand and vice versa
• Rub the fingertips of one hand in the other and do the same for the other hand
• Rinse thoroughly then dry with a towel

Using protective gloves

 

After washing your hands, the next thing to do is to put on gloves in addition to serving as extra protection against infection. Use disposable gloves more often and put them away immediately after using them to treat a victim. When taking off the gloves, grab the top edge of one glove with your other gloved hand and peel it off so that it is inside out. Do the same with the other hand so you don’t touch the outside of the gloves.

Putting on disposable gloves

• Hold one glove by the tip and pull it on. Avoid touching the main part of the gloves with your fingers 
• Pick up the second glove with your gloved hand. Put your fingers under the top edge and pull it onto your other hand. Do not let your gloved finger touch your skin

Dealing with waste 

After treating the victim, every material you use must be disposed of carefully to avoid the spread of infection. Get a waste bag, if possible, and put in all the items you used in treating the victim. Go on to tightly seal the bag and dispose of it. Also, find a container to keep all the sharp items you used and keep them in. Do not place the sharp items you used in the waste bag.