What is First Aid?

First aid is the emergency help or treatment that one is accorded in the event of sudden illness or injury before regular medical services can be offered.

It is recommended that such aid be offered by a trained first aider to avoid further complications or injury. Since anyone can be affected by these emergencies, it is important that everyone has some basic first aid skills in order to help others at home, at school, socially and at the work place.

First aid training is made available by various organisations around the world such as the Red Cross Society, Flying Doctors and St. John’s Ambulance. 

What basic first aid training entails:

 Casualty care and communication.

This deals with how a person should talk to the casualty before, during and after first aid.

It is very important to have a conversation with the casualty in order to know how to address their issue. Casualty care involves knowing how to handle the casualty in terms of hygiene, positioning and even the environment in which they should be handled in order to improve their condition.

Caring for yourself and the casualty.

The safety measures that one should observe to prevent risks such as catching infections when administering first aid.

Treating burns and minor bleeding.

Basic first aid training covers burns and minor bleeding. These are two things that occur more often in our daily lives therefore it is important to be equipped with skills on how to handle them properly when they occur.

How to treat an unresponsive casualty.

Sometimes a casualty may not respond to the treatment that is offered to them. This is a situation that can at times be life threatening and handling it needs skill and patience. First aid training will equip you with skills on how to approach it.

First aid priorities and scene management.

Here, one is taught on what treatment should be done step by step and how to keep the scene conducive for the recovery of the casualty.

Importance of first aid training.

The benefits of being trained on first aid cannot be overlooked. First aid training helps to save lives. So many people lose their lives due to a lack of basic first aid assistance being applied until the professionals arrive. With knowledge, we could all help in such circumstances.

First Aid training is essential for those living with people who need continuous monitoring. Such people could be suffering from anaemia, diabetes or epilepsy. Having first aid skills will prove reassuring in the event of an ‘episode’ because knowledge reduces the seriousness of what can appear to be an emergency. 

In summary.

Everyone is eligible for first aid training. These acquired, lifelong skills cover all sorts of eventualities and since it is not possible to predict when and where an emergency may occur, we can be confident that we will be able to be useful if and when one happens. 

Remember, Mayfair Cares.

References:

https://www.firstaidae.com.au/about-first-aid-ae/why-is-first-aid-important/

http://www.sja.org.uk/sja/first-aid-training-courses.aspx

http://www.redcross.org/take-a-class/first-aid/first-aid-training