First Aid Course Review
Emergency First Aid 4.4.09
Ten HF members met on Saturday 4th April at the Whiteinch Centre for a full day’s First Aid course. It was informative and enjoyable in a weird sort of way (videos of people whose legs are the wrong way round, suffering anaphylaxis (massive swelling due to allergic reaction – kills in minutes) asthmatics struggling with their last breaths of life, and car crash victims!). A lot of the scenarios we looked at showed the importance of quick and appropriate reaction by those not injured. Loss of life or limb could depend on the reactions of those with the injured person.
Rod was our main teacher and what a wealth of knowledge he has about all things medical. He explained everything in a very practical way and geared the course very much towards dealing with emergencies in the outdoors. He also explained how we can improvise. For example those mats we use to sit on at lunch are excellent supports for broken limbs. We checked for injury, moving (or not!) and handling, bandaging techniques and how to deal with a variety of situations, from insect stings to choking, breaks and falls, bleeding, fainting, hypothermia, heart attacks, diabetes – the lot!
He clarified some areas I had doubt about. For example we are not allowed to medicate anyone else. Not even an aspirin. What we can do is tell the victim that we have a certain medicine and they could self medicate. Also he brought home the need to call 999 or 112 as soon as possible, but also with as much information about the condition of the injured person and the precise location. If there is no signal and someone has to be sent away to make the phone call they should wait until a check has been made on the casualty.
CPR (resuscitation) the chest banging and deep breathing into an unconscious patient is a real last gasp measure which none of us should ever be in. This means the person is dead. And dead on a hill with 2 hours to wait for mountain rescue is not a good position to be in. 5 minutes of CPR is all most of us can do, and even with CPR the patient is unlikely to make a full recovery.
Lyme’s disease is apparently a big problem now, but don’t burn or pick the tick off – buy a tick removal tool and use that. This is so the biting part of the tick doesn’t remain in your body and continue the infection.
Tourniquets are no longer used as they can stop blood circulation in a limb completely.
We were also given a good idea of how to observe early and oncoming signs of illness.
Stewart is a member of the Mountain Rescue and gave a realistic insight into what would help them in their job (voluntary). One thing he did emphasise was that they would rather be called out early evening to bring back a couple of weary but alive people than to be called out later in the evening to recover lifeless bodies.
It was a day packed full of information and thought provoking facts and I’ve outlined a few of the things I thought would be of interest to all you outdoorsy people.
If you haven’t already done so put the name of your next of kin under ICE (In Case of Emergency ) in your mobile phone directory. If you suffer a medical condition of relevance wear the medi-tag appropriate to your condition. For those of us with mild medical conditions perhaps have a tag at the top of your rucksack with medication you may be taking, allergies you have .... just in case!!!
Take responsibility for your own wellbeing by carrying your own personalised first aid kit. Inform your leader if you do have a major condition (but remember he/she doesn’t want a full medical history from each walker!)
Suggested Basic First Aid Kit: 2 crepe bandages (tubigrips, unless specific to your own ‘problem area’, are not suitable), triangular bandage, assorted dressings, plasters, seri-strips, sun lotion, insect repellent, energy tablets, tick extractor or tweezers, protective gloves (not latex as some people are allergic to them), alcohol free cleansing wipes, scissors, survival blanket or bag.
Needless to say if someone does have an injury they are bound to get cold so extra clothing should also be packed.
Thanks to Rod & Stewart who worked very hard at getting as much information to us as possible.
OK any volunteers for broken bone pulling?
