FIRST AID FACTS:

 

Accidents are the leading cause of death.

 

The most important thing to do in an emergency is to call the local emergency number.

 

Diseases that require first aid care can be transmitted by breathing, biting and touching.

 

The three basic steps you can take in an emergency are: check, call and care.

 

You should move a victim if they are in immediate danger.

 

A victim should be moved when the first aider needs to get to another victim.

 

A victim should be moved when needed to receive care.

 

While waiting for an ambulance and the victim is conscious, able to talk or breathe and has a pulse, you should introduce yourself and ask their permission to help them.

 

When coming upon an unconscious person you should check breathing, bleeding and pulse, by placing you hand near the victims mouth and nose, looking and listening and feeling for about 5 seconds, you can tell if a person is breathing.

 

A dressing is used to prevent additional contamination.

 

Treatment for a snakebite is to wash the would and keep the bitten part lower than the heart.

 

The correct method of giving CPR to a child who is not breathing and has no pulse would be 5 chest-compressions and 1 breath.

 

Emergency treatment for burns would include cooling the burn to relieve pain.

 

When a tooth has been knocked out you should control the bleeding and transport the student and the tooth to a medical facility.

 

When treating a first degree burn you should apply cold water and a sterile dressing, if possible.

 

The best place to feel for a pulse on a baby is on the arm midway between the elbow and the shoulder.

 

Nose bleeds could occur after exposure to high altitudes, cold and strenuous activity.

 

A person who is unable t breathe due to something stuck in the airway should not be given cough syrup, medicines, bread or crackers.

 

An abrasion is most likely to become infected.

 

In treating a sprain you would apply cold wet packs.

 

To control severe bleeding, direct pressure over the would is the best method.

 

Heat stroke is more serious than heat cramps or heat exhaustion.

 

Signs of shock are pale, cool, moist skin.

 

When a person has an epileptic convulsion, the most important thing is to keep the victims from hurting themselves.

 

In treating for shock the victim can best be helped with reassurance and comfort.

 

Signs of shock are rapid breathing.

 

For chemical burns to the skin or eyes the intial first aid would be to flush with large amounts of water.

 

A dressing  is used to absorb blood and secretions, prevent contamination.

 

When checking an unconscious person you should check for bumps and depressions, feel the victims forehead for damp, dry, cool or hot skin.

 

If an unconscious person vomits, you should turn them onto one side and clear the mouth and throat.

 

For a mild nose bleed you should apply pressure by pressing the bleeding nostril toward the midline.

 

A person having signs of hyperventilation will have rapid and shallow breathing.

 

A chocking victim who is  unable to cough or speak and gives a distress signal needs someone to provide a series of upward thrusts to the abdomen.

 

A bruise is called a closed would injury.

 

When giving rescue breathing, tilt the head back, lift chin, pinch nose and breathe int the victims mouth.

 

The most common burn caused by the sun is a first degree burn.

 

When giving rescue breathing to avoid getting air into the persons stomach, you should tilt the head back and breathe slowly into the persons mouth.

 

When blood soaks through a dressing, apply more dressings, do not remove blood soaked bandages.

 

When treating a broken elbow you immobilize the bone in the position in which it was found.

 

Giving sugar is the basic care for a diabetic emergency.

 

When force to make a decision as to which injury to treat first, you would treat clearing the airway.

 

When a person has an epileptic convulsion or seizure you should remove any object that the person might hit.

 

A person having a convulsion should not have any object placed between their teeth, be given any liquid or be restrained.

 

The thrust, finger sweep and breaths sequence must be followed if the persons airway is blocked by tongue, food, objects or liquid.

 

When you suspect a person is having a heart attack you should  get information about the victim and head vital signs and get the victim to stop and rest and call the emergency number for help.

 

CPR is a combination of chest compressions and rescue breathing.

 

A child’s heart stopping is usually the result of a breathing emergency.

 

Placing an infant face down on the forearm is the correct position to administer a back blow.

 

A student could stop breathing if something is lodged in the windpipe or the tongue has fallen back in the mouth.

 

When rescue breathing you should seal your mouth over the infants nose and mouth.

 

Severe bleeding can occur under the skin and the skin’s surface.

 

Bandages are material used to wrap or cover any part of the body.

 

An impaled object should not be removed in most cases.

 

In treating burns you would cool the burn with water, stop the burning, remove the victim from the burn source and cover the burn with a sterile dressing.

 

A dressing is a pad placed directly on the wound.

 

A roller elastic bandage is used to keep pressure on a part of the body.

 

Remove wet clothing from a person suffering with hypothermia.

 

The roller elastic bandage is used to control swelling and give support.

 

Shock is a condition in which the circulatory system fails to deliver blood to all parts of the body.

 

The roller elastic bandage is used on injuries to joints.

 

When feeling for a pulse on a baby the most effective pressure point is the brachial artery.

 

When caring for a person with shock you should call your local emergency number, lay the person down, elevate legs approximately 12 inches, control bleeding.

 

Care for a person suffering from hypothermia requires you to call the local emergency number.

 

If a person has a splinter in their eye, do not try to remove the splinter.

 

If a person bleeding from the mouth and there is no reason to suspect a serious head or spine injury, you should sit the person up with the head tilted slightly forward.

 

Care for a sucking chest wound requires you to cover the wound with a dressing that does not allow air to pass through it and give other care as needed.

After splinting an injury you should be reassuring.

 

You would immediately call an ambulance for a burn victim if the victim is having breathing difficulty, the victim is burned on more than one part of the body or chemicals, explosion or electricity has caused the burn.

 

Suspect spinal injury if there is heavy external bleeding, head, neck or back, unable to use the affected part, injured part is numb or cold or deformity, bruising or swelling.

 

A person having a seizure should be protected from injury and keep the airway open.

 

You suspect a person has taken poison you should check the person’s level of consciousness, breathing, pulse and call poison control.

 

A wheezing noise a person makes when breathing is a sign of an asthma attack.

 

Unconsciousness is a sign that a person’s life is threatened.

 

If a person has a pulse but is not breathing you should give rescue breathing.

 

The Good Samaritan Law generally prevails when citizens respond to an emergency and act as a reasonable and prudent person would under the same conditions.

 

To reduce the risk of disease when giving first aid you should wash hands with soap and water after giving first aid, not eat or drink or touch your mouth, eyes or nose while giving first aid and avoid contact with body fluids.

 

The best place to feel for a pulse on an adult is the side of the neck.

 

E.M.S. stands for the Emergency Medical System.

 

When speaking on the phone to the dispatcher of the emergency medical system you should not hang up until the dispatcher hangs up or tells you they have the necessary information.

 

If a choking victim is coughing forcefully, let them cough.

 

In rescue breathing you want the air to reach the victims lungs.

 

If an elastic bandage is applied too tight it will restrict blood flow.

 

Help maintain normal body temperature and reassure the victim are treatments for shock.

 

A nose bleed can be controlled by having the victim sit with the head slightly forward, pinching the nostrils together, applying an ice pack to the bridge of the nose and putting pressure on the lip.

 

If you suspect internal bleeding keep the person lying down and watch for signs of internal bleeding.

 

If one or more teeth have been knocked out you should try and find the part, wrap it in sterile gauze, put the part in a plastic bag and keep it cool.

 

In treating an electrical burn you cover with a dry sterile dressing.

 

In caring for a person who has fainted, you should lay them down, elevate their legs 8”-12” if possible, check breathing and give nothing to eat or drink.

 

When splinting an injury you should splint the injury in the position in which it was found, check for circulation before and after splinting, splint the injured area and the joints above and below the area.

 

In caring for head and spine injuries you should keep the person from getting chilled or overheated, check for breathing, consciousness and control any external bleeding minimize movement of head and spine and maintain an open airway.

 

If someone has been strung by a scorpion or bitten by a spider you should apply a cold pack, wash the would and get medical help immediately.

 

Signs of internal bleeding are raid weak pulse, cool or moist, pale or bluish skin, tender, swollen, bruised or hard areas of the body (such as the abdomen), vomiting or coughing up blood, excessive thirst, confused, faint, drowsy or unconscious.

 

Signs of poisoning are nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, chest or abdominal pain.

 

Unusual skin color is a sign of a possible emergency.

 

If an accident causes the organs in the abdomen to become exposed you should position the victim on their back and remove clothing around the wound and apply a moist sterile dressing.