What Is First Aid?
The goal of first aid is to stabilize the condition of the injured person until the rescue service arrives and can provide professional care. This task must be able to take over by everyone. It is simply a matter of bringing the injured person to a safe place, initiating immediate life-saving measures and making the emergency call (911).
According to the Criminal Code, everyone is obliged to provide first aid. If, for example, a traffic accident occurs, in which one does not offer oneself as a first aid responder and help, although this is necessary and also feasible, a fine or imprisonment of up to one year must be expected.
Provide First Aid: 5 Steps to First Aid
Accidents can happen anytime and anywhere. It is important to have the basic knowledge to provide proper first aid. The following is explained in 5 steps simple, how to proceed in an emergency best.
1. Secure the Scene of the Accident
First of all, it is important to secure the scene of the accident appropriately and bring injured people off the danger zone. Only when you are a few meters from the accident site and safe, you can take care of the injured more intensively. This way, you don’t put yourself or the accident victims in additional danger.
2. Make an Emergency Call
Only when there is no longer acute danger, you should immediately dial 911. Above all, try to stay calm on the phone and remember to give the following information to the rescue center.
- Where did the accident happen?
- What exactly happened?
- How many victims are there?
- What injuries do they have?
Don’t hang up immediately under any circumstances. Often the ambulance service will give useful instructions over the phone about what to do next.
3. Initiate Life-Saving Measures
When there are multiple injured people, it is important to consider who needs help most urgently. Accident victims who are unresponsive or unresponsive should get your attention immediately.
In this case, you should immediately initiate chest compressions with ventilation. You do this as follows:
- Press forcefully 30 times in succession on the center of the chest. Be sure to stay in the right rhythm during this.
- Take two mouth-to-mouth breaths.
- Continue chest compressions.
- Continue to check breathing in between.
- If breathing does not resume, continue this measure until the rescue service arrives.
4. Stop Bleeding
However, if the casualty is bleeding profusely, you should do the following:
- Use disposable gloves to protect yourself from infection if necessary.
- If the accident victim is conscious ask this to lie down to avoid circulatory collapse.
- Apply a pressure dressing, making sure it is tight enough to stop bleeding, but not too tight that the blood supply is cut off.
5. Stable Lateral Position
In the event that the victim is unconscious but still breathing, you should place the person in the stable lateral position so that the airway remains clear.