first aid principles and practice
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FIRST AIDPrinciples and Practice
K.S. ChewLecturer/Emergency Physician
School of Medical SciencesUniversiti Sains Malaysia
First aid….. it is better to know it and not need it than to need it and not know it.
“Whatever can go wrong, will.”
- Murphy Law
“Whatever can happen to one man can happen to every man.”
Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4 B.C.? – A.D.65)
Definition of First Aid
What is First Aid?Definition:
• First aid is the immediate care given to an injured or suddenly ill person. First aid does not take the place of proper medical treatment.
First Aid
• Immediate care given to an injured or suddenly ill person– Without any proper medical equipment– Temporary assistance until arrival of
competent medical care– Does not take the place of proper
medical treatment
Who provides first aid?
• Police, Bomba/firefighters, JPA staffs• St. John’s Ambulance members, Red
Crescent members, Scouts, Girl Guides• Bystanders, public members• Relatives, family members, friends• Workmates, teachers• Medical students, anyone ……YOU!
Principles of First Aid
Principle #1: First, do no harmKnow what to do and know what NOT to do
First Do No Harm
• Do no harm does not mean do nothing.• The wisdom is not just to know what to do,
but what NOT to do• Sometimes the best thing you can do for a
casualty is to call for help.• Provide comfort and assurance to the
casualty may be the only thing you can do
First Do No Harm
• Use treatments you know of that are most likely to benefit a casualty
• Do not use a treatment that you are not sure about “just for the sake of trying”
Principle #2: First Aid Is Not An Exact Science And Is Open To
Error
First Aid Is Not An Exact Science
• First aid is practiced by people from all walks of life
• Therefore there are great variations in terms of methods and practice
• A casualty may not respond as you hoped no matter how good and how hard you try
First Aid Is Not An Exact Science
• Don’t feel bad if the casualty don’t respond as you would like him to.
• If you have done your best, your conscience should be clear.
• You may also have to deal with your own fear in real life situations
Principle #3: First Aid is about Putting First Things First
First Things First
• Get your priority right• If there are too many injuries in a casualty,
treat the most urgent injuries first• If there are too many casualties
– First, call for help– Treat the ones with the highest chance of
survival
Don’t treat him. Forget it!
They are also not your priority. Keep them aside and leave them to chat with each other!
• The first step to get our priority right is to know and recognize what is an emergency and what is not an emergency!
• Sometimes it is very difficult, e.g. heart attack can be silent
• Hollywood emergencies don’t always exist in real life
First Things First
Hollywood Heart Attack
Recognize An Emergency
• Factors that determine whether bystander recognize an emergency:
• Severity: motor-vehicle crash• Physical distance: the closer, the more
noticeable• Relationship: knowing the victim, the more
noticeable, e.g. mother and child• Time exposed: the longer exposed, the
more noticeable
Principle #4: Safety Is Of Utmost Importance In First Aid
Why Some Bystander Refuse To Help?
• Ignorance– Hiding own fear and incompetency
• Confused about what is an emergency– Too much Hollywood movies
• Characteristics of the emergency situation– The blood, smell, vomitus
• Fear it may be fake– Fear own safety; disguised as emergency
One important strategy that people use to avoid action is to refuse (consciously or
unconsciously) to acknowledge the emergency situation
Other Excuses
• It could be harmful– HIV infection
• Helping doesn’t matter– Victim is drunk
• Obstacles may prevent helping– Drowning victim in a mining pool (bystander
doesn’t know how to swim)
Decide to help
If you decide to help, you must:• Feel confident to help• Take time to help• Put the potential risks of helping in
perspective• Take charge at an emergency scene• Comfortable in seeing a victim who is
bleeding or vomiting
Chain of Survival
RECOGNITION
Is this an emergency condition?
DECIDE TO HELP
CONTACT EMS if
needed or if not sure
ASSESS SCENE AND VICTIM
FIRST AID
NOYES
MEDICAL CARE ARRIVED
CHANCE OF RECOVERY WITHOUT MEDICAL
CARE ASSURED
Scene Survey
• Scene safety• Mechanism of injury• Number of patients
RECOGNITION
Is this an emergency condition?
DECIDE TO HELP
CONTACT EMS if
needed or if not sure
ASSESS SCENE AND VICTIM
FIRST AID
NOYES
MEDICAL CARE ARRIVED
CHANCE OF RECOVERY WITHOUT MEDICAL
CARE ASSURED
Need EMS?Call EMS if1. The victim’s condition life threatening or
could get worse2. The victim need the skills or equipment
of EMS3. Distance or traffic could cause a delay in
getting to hospital4. If you are not sure
What Information To Relay• Identify yourself• E: Exact Location• T: Type of event• H: Hazard• A: Access• N: Number of casualties involved• E: Existing emergency services• Put down phone only if asked to
History
• Symptoms• Allergies• Medicatios• Past Medical History• Last oral intake• Events leading up to the illness or injury
Physical Examination• Deformity• Open wound• Tenderness• Swelling
• For extremities• Remember to add Pulses, Movement, Sensation (PMS)
Seven Essential First Aid Interventions
1. Call for ambulance2. DO NOT move and DO NOT allow
movement unnecessarily of a trauma casualty
3. Perform chin lift or head tilt chin lift4. Mouth-to-mouth breathing (if willing)
especially in children, drowning or poisoning
5. Chest compression6. Operate an automated external
defibrillator7. Stop any bleeding
Seven Essential First Aid Interventions
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