First aid hints and answers

This post is designed for people to ask questions and contribute their expertise in resolving questions about first aid in the field.

We all know that first aid in the workplace is about minimising harm to yourself so we dont get injured ourselves, HOWEVER what takes place when you see someone collapse and your immediate instinct is to render them assistance?
We can go back to the basics of apply  first aid, First letter D for danger.  But that is our mate, our work colleague, our family member our Child.  Does the concern for our own safety still hold true?

YES! You need to make sure you don’t become a casualty yourself.  if you find yourself becoming a casualty that means that the person coming to your rescue needs to make a choice between two people who are injured, what if they start work on you and the one you tried to save dies?  Their one chance of life became the reason for their death.  YOU need to keep a clear head and ensure that you are of assistance to them by making sure you do take into consideration the circumstances of their injury and the likely hood of any dangers.

So what do you do?  Check for dangers, if a danger is identified that you are unable to manage on your own, call for help (most have a mobile phone these days so call 000 and inform the call centre of your need.  Using items that are nearby see if it is possible to move the danger or the person away from the danger if safe to do so.  Sometimes it is just as important to do nothing as it is to do something, if the person is responsive and sitting in a car that has become electrified, simply by talking to the person in the car it is sufficient to ensure that they are kept safe and reassured that an ambulance is on the way.  Where as the moment you touch any part of the car you become the source of the grounding of that electricity, resulting in the electricity potentially killing you both.

Think always that your job is to support the casualty to the best of your ability and to keep both of you safe.  Your Mate, family member or Child is counting on you to make sure you dont become a casualty as well and that you can give real support in their time of need by doing the right thing.