I just got certified in CPR and First Aid last month with the American Heart Association. I wanted to share this information with you, because a lot of what we see on TV is not at all accurate as to what you’re supposed to do to actually help someone. Here are some of the topics that were covered:
Here are the steps you should follow when addressing a situation where a person may be injured/unconscious:
Check to make sure the scene is safe- you are no help to anybody if you also get hurt
If the person is responsive: “Are you okay?”
If they are unresponsive, hit their shoulders hard and yell: “Are you okay?” to see if you can rouse them
Phone 911 and put the phone on speaker (you can delegate this task to somebody else if you’re not alone)
Have somebody get a First Aid kit (don’t leave the person if you’re by yourself unless the 911 operator tells you to)
Is the person conscious? Unconscious?
Check them for any obvious signs of injury
Check them for medical jewelry
Time is of the essence! Be decisive and confident.
Don’t be afraid to call for help and assign people tasks
You can only perform CPR on a flat service. If a person needs CPR and is on a bed or in a chair, move them to the floor immediately. Don’t worry about hurting their head or anything, if they don’t get CPR immediately, their life expectancy is significantly less. (See my CPR post for full details)
Do not move the person unless the area they’re in is unsafe. If you have to move the person, drag them by their clothes and pull them to safety.
There are both mild and severe cases of adult choking. In a mild case, the person choking will be able to make a sound or cough loudly. Typically these cases resolve themselves.
Ask: “Are you choking? Can I help you?”
If the person cannot make a sound or cough in response, they are suffering from severe choking.
Walk around back of the person and put your arms around them
Make a fist with your dominant hand
Place your fist slightly above the belly button and below the chest bone.
Grasp the fist with your other hand
Give quick upward thrusts
If the person is overweight or pregnant, put your arms around the person’s armpits.
If you are unsuccessful in removing the blockage, the person will quickly become unresponsive. You will need to perform adult CPR and call 911.
After chest compressions (see above link) check person’s mouth to see if the thing they choked on is visible. If it is visible, remove it. Never going digging around in someone’s mouth.
Call 911 and put the phone on speaker
Both these steps can be delegated to someone else if they’re around
Put gauze on the wound and apply pressure until the bleeding stops
Do not remove the gauze if it’s bled through- this will remove any blood clots that have formed.
If the gauze is bled through, add more gauze on top and keep applying pressure until the bleeding stops
Clean the amputated part with water
Warp the amputated part with dressing
Put the amputated part in a small plastic bag
Get a larger plastic bag and fill it with equal parts ice and water
Put the small plastic bag inside the large plastic bag
Label the bag with person’s name and time of the injury
Asthma (How to Operate an Inhaler)
People diagnosed with asthma will typically be aware of it and may have an inhaler on them. If someone has an asthma attack:
Ask them: “Are you okay? Do you need your inhaler?”
The person will probably be able to give some sort of indication in response
If they need their inhaler:
Put the medicine (metallic capsule pictured below) in the inhaler if it is not already in there, it will click into place
Shake the inhaler to activate the medicine
Attach the mouth piece if it’s unattached (not all inhalers have one, it is not pictured below)
Remove the cap (cap is darker blue piece pictured below)
Have the person put their head back
Put the inhaler in the person’s mouth
Push down on the canister and have them breathe out slowly
They should begin to feel relief immediately, but you should still have them sit down and take it easy for a while
Call 911 if they are still having difficulty breathing after the inhaler has been administered
Usually bee stings present only mild irritation and pain. If the person stung has a severe allergic reaction, you will need to call 911.
Scrape away the bee stinger and venom sack using a credit card or something similar in nature
Wash the affected area with lots of soap and running water
Wrap a bag of ice in a towel and place it over the affected area for 20 minutes or until the pain is gone
Watch the person for up to 30 minutes for signs of an allergic reaction
Call 911 if they present any classic allergy symptoms
Have the person lean their head forward
Or have someone else get one
Have the bleeding person apply pressure to the bridge of their nose using gauze from the First Aid kit
Do not remove the gauze if it’s bled through- this will remove any blood clots that have formed.
If the gauze is bled through, add more gauze on top until the bleeding stops
Call 911 if the bleeding lasts longer than 15 minutes
Can lead to heat exhaustion! These typically happen when someone is dehydrated and tries to do lots of physical activity.
Have the person sit down and cool off
Have them drink something with sugar and electrolytes
Water will work in a pinch but sugary drinks and gatorade are preferred
Call 911 and put the phone on speaker
Cool the person by pouring water on them or wetting them with wet cloths until they begin to act normally
Have them drink something with sugar and electrolytes
Water will work in a pinch but sugary drinks and gatorade are preferred
Wait with them until help arrives
My instructor said that these will often happen in an unsafe or an isolated environment. Always check to make sure that the scene is safe- look out for needles.
Naloxone is used to revive people who have overdosed on opioids. If you find someone who has overdosed on opioids you happen to have naloxone on you and know how to administer it, the American Heart Association recommends that you use it instead of waiting for help to arrive.
Call 911 and put the phone on speaker
Wait with the person until help arrives
Call 911 and put the phone on speaker
Perform five cycles of adult CPR
Seizures are abnormal electrical activity in the brain. Typical seizure symptoms: spasms, muscle rigidity, and unconsciousness. Seizures typically last between 60-90 seconds before the person gains consciousness.
Do NOT touch the person who is having a seizure
Do NOT put anything in their mouth
Call 911 and put the phone on speaker
If there are people around, ask them to get a First Aid kit while you wait with the person having the seizure
Don’t leave the person having a seizure if you are alone
Move objects away from the person having the seizure so that they don’t knock into them
If possible, place a small towel/pad underneath the person’s head
If the person starts vomiting, turn them over on their side so that they don’t choke
If possible use gloves and an eye mask from a First Aid kit to avoid exposure to bodily fluids
After they come to, they may be bleeding from the mouth.
Use gauze from a First Aid kit to stop the bleeding
Have them apply pressure with the gauze until the bleeding stops
Stay with the person until help arrives
Splints should be significantly longer than the injured area. They’re used to constrict movement, so the person is injured should not be able to move freely once the splint is applied. Splints are use to treat broken/dislocated bones. It’s very difficult to tell if a bone is actually broken or just dislocated, so don’t worry about it and just splint the thing.
Call 911 and put the phone on speaker
Both these steps can be delegated to someone else if they’re around
Put on gloves/eye glasses from the First Aid kit to avoid contamination from bodily fluids
Cover exposed wound area with gauze
Do not remove the gauze if it’s bled through- this will remove any blood clots that have formed.
If the gauze is bled through, add more gauze on top until the bleeding stops.
Place a strip of rigid material underneath the injured area
Use gauze/dressing from the First Aid kit to secure the splint by wrapping material above and below the injured area
Never tie material directly over the injury
Have the person stay as still as possible until help arrives
Strokes are caused from blockage/bleeding from things like blood clots. Typical signs of a stroke: face drooping (or numbness), arm weakness (or numbness), and speech difficulty. There is nothing much you can do except wait with the person and try to make them comfortable until help arrives.
Call 911 and put the phone on speaker
Note the time that the stroke symptoms began (this will help hospital technicians)
Stay with the person until help arrives
Some First Aid kits will come with a pre-made tourniquet. If your kit does not have a tourniquet you can make one fairly easily. Tourniquets should only be used for injuries where the person is squirting blood. No squirting blood? Use a splint.
Call 911 and put the phone on speaker
Both these steps can be delegated to someone else if they’re around
Put on gloves/eye glasses from the First Aid kit to avoid contamination from bodily fluids
Fold cloth or a bandage so that it’s long and an inch wide
Wrap the the bandage/cloth two inches above the wound
Never apply a tourniquet bandage/cloth on a joint (like elbows or knees).
Place the small stick atop the cloth/bandage and tie it there
You can now turn the small stick to tighten the cloth/bandage
Have the injured person lay down and try to move as little as possible
Do not remove the tourniquet- even if the bleeding stops.
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