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Basic First Aid: Knowing When to Act

First aid can often mean the difference between life and death, so it is important to understand some basic medical techniques. However, a big part of first aid is about knowing when to use these techniques. Many times the act of calling an ambulance is the best kind of first aid you can offer.

In some cases, the best thing someone can do in an emergency situation is leave the person alone, while waiting on a professional. This is of course not the case if someone is gushing blood, but it could be that moving an injured person could cause them further harm.

This is often seen in car crashes where the victim has injured their neck or spine. In this case, moving them without a neck brace in place could cause serious injury. Another example would be were cradling someone's head could end up restricting their breathing.

A big part of first aid is understanding when to act and when not to act.

Getting Sued for Administering First Aid

At this point, it is also important to mention legal considerations of offering first aid. Unfortunately, we live in a litigious society where suing someone for a perceived injustice often is the first thought in many peoples mind.

An extremely unfortunate side effect of being a litigious society, is that it becomes necessary to consider legal ramifications even when you are trying to help someone out.

In the case of first aid, it is important to provide care with the understanding that the person, or their family, could very well decide to sue you afterwards. When preforming first aid on someone, however, as long as you are acting in good faith and to the best of your abilities, there is usually no legal recourse for the individual.

With that said, it is important to speak with the victim first and if at all possible ask them for permission to help. At this point, you are for all intensive purposes acting on their behalf and should remain with them as long as you can safely do so. If the person is physically unable to provide consent, then their consent is typically assumed, especially if they are in what you perceive as a life threating situation.

Again, it is important to understand when to do something and when to do nothing, as all legalities aside, you do not want to risk hurting someone by your actions.

Be Prepared

In the heat of the moment, it can be extremely hard to remain calm and in control of your emotions, but this is very important to anyone providing first aid.

Staying calm not only helps the person you are working on, as they are less likely to become worried, but it also helps you to provide the highest level of care possible. A big part of staying calm comes from being prepared, both physically and mentally.

It is important to think of how you would react in certain situations and how you would apply your knowledge of first aid. This is often easier said than done, especially when something actually happens. However, by planning ahead, you will be much better served, as will the person you are caring for.

Another big part of being prepared is keeping a first aid kit handy The first aid kit should be well stocked and should include a list off the important numbers you might use in an emergency, such as the poison control center, as well as the numbers of friends and family.

Preventative First Aid

Another big part of first aid, and for that matter any type of health care, is preventative care. It is important to take measures to prevent accidents from occurring and staying healthy, rather than simply acting when something goes wrong.

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