Preparing for Emergencies

If you are prepared for unforeseen emergencies, you can help ensure that care begins as soon as possible - for yourself, family and friends, and others in your community. First aid training will help you to focus on the most important aspects of care by giving you a basic plan of action that can be used in an emergency. By knowing what to do, you will be better able to manage your fears and overcome your barriers to action. You can be ready for most emergencies if you do the following things now:

• Keep important information about you and your family in a handy place such as on the refrigerator door and in your car's glove compartment. Include everyone's date of birth, medical conditions, allergies, and prescriptions and dosages. List doctors' names and phone numbers.
• Keep medical and insurance records up to date.
• Find out if your community is served by an emergency 000 telephone number. If it's not, look up the numbers for police, fire brigade, ambulance service and The Poisons Information Center. As soon as they are old enough to use the telephone, teach your children how to call for help.
• Keep emergency telephone numbers listed in a handy place such as by the telephone and in your first aid kit. Include the phone and office phone numbers of family members, friends, and neighbors who can help. Be sure to keep both the list and the telephone numbers current.
• Make sure your house or unit number is easy to read. Numerals are easier to read than spelled out numbers. Report any missing street signs to the proper authorities. 
• Wear a medical alert tag if you have a potentially serious medical condition such as epilepsy, diabetes, heart disease or allergies. A medical alert tag, usually worn on a necklace, bracelet, or a personal medical ID card provides important medical information if you can't communicate. 
• Keep a first aid kit readily available in your home, car, workplace, and recreation area. Store each kit in a dry place and replace used contents regularly. Different first aid kits are required for various circumstances. A first aid kit should contain a variety of dressings and bandages together with scissors, forceps, and other items.

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Preventing Emergencies

Being responsible means that you take reasonable precautions to prevent emergencies from occurring. Injuries remain the leading cause of death and disability in children and young adults. Thousands of people die each year in a certain country due to injuries. No one knows for sure how many of these victims die needlessly from preventable incidents. Emergencies also occur as a result of unhealthy lifestyles. For example, your exercise and dietary habits influence the health of your heart. Unhealthy habits such as over eating, smoking and lack of exercise, can increase your chances of heart attack.

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Legal Considerations

People are sometimes afraid that in the stress of an emergency they may make mistakes when they give first aid and cause harm to victim. When giving first aid to stranger, people may worry further that a mistake may lead to a legal problem or that they will be sued if they do wrong thing.
Be reassured that in the eyes of the law, first aiders are not expected to be perfect. The general legal principle is that the first aiders is expected to act reasonably and prudently with a genuine concern for the best interests of victim. If you follow this principle, you should not worry about being sued.

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Responding to Emergencies

In an emergency, your involvement as a trained first aider may be crucial.
Every year, countless first aiders and bystanders recognize and respond to emergencies. Some phone for help, some comfort the victim or family members, some give first aid to victims and others help keep order at the emergency scene.
There are many ways you can help, but in order to help, you must first decide to act.

BARRIERS TO ACTION

Sometimes people do not recognize that an emergency has occurred. At other times, people recognize an emergency but are reluctant to act.
People have various reasons for hesitating or not acting. These are called barriers to action. Some are very personal. Common reasons people give for not acting include:

1. Presence of bystanders.
2. Uncertainty about the victim.
3. Nature of the injury or illness.
4. Fear of disease transmission.
5. Fear of doing something wrong.

Thinking about these thing now and mentally preparing yourself to act in an emergency will enable you to respond more confidently.

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How to Recognize Emergencies

Recognizing an emergency is the first step in responding. An emergency is a situation requiring immediate action. A medical emergency is a sudden illness such as heart attack, which requires immediate medical attention. An injury is a damage to the body, such as broken arm, which results from a violent force. Some injuries can be serious enough to be considered emergencies.
The victim of an emergency can be anyone- a friend, family member, a stranger, or you. An emergency can happen anywhere- on the road, at home, work, or play. Recognizing an emergency may be difficult at times. You may become aware of an emergency because of certain things you observe such as unusual noises, sights, smells, symptoms and signs, or behavior.

UNUSUAL NOISES

Noises are often the first thing you may call your attention to an emergency. Some noises that may indicate emergency are:

1. Noises that indicate someone is in distress, such as screaming, yelling, moaning, crying, and calling for help.
2. Alarming identifiable noises, such as breaking glass, crashing metal or screeching tires.
3. Abrupt or loud noises that aren't identifiable such as collapsing structures or falling ladders.

UNUSUAL SIGHTS

Unusual sights that indicate a possible emergency can go unnoticed by the unaware observer. Some examples of sights that may signal emergencies are:

1. A stalled vehicle.
2. An overturned saucepan on the kitchen floor.
3. A spilled medicine container.
4. A fallen chair.

UNUSUAL SMELL

Many smells are part of our everyday lives, for example, petrol fumes at petrol stations, the smell of chlorine at swimming pools or smoke from a fire. However, when a smell is stronger than usual, is not easily identifiable or otherwise seems odd, it may indicate an emergency. You should always put your own safety first if you are in a situation in which there is unusual or very strong smell as many fumes are poisonous.

UNUSUAL SYMPTOMS OF SIGNS OR BEHAVIOR

It may be difficult to tell if someone's appearance or behavior is unusual, particularly when the person is a stranger. However, certain symptoms and signs or behaviors could indicate an emergency. For example, if you see someone collapse to the floor, that person obviously requires your immediate attention. However, you will not know if first aid is needed until you approach the individual, who may have merely slipped and not be in need of any help. On the other hand, the person may be unconscious and need immediate medical assistance. Other symptoms and signs and behavior that could indicate an emergency may be less obvious. They include:

1. Breathing difficulty.
2. Clutching the chest or throat.
3. Slurred, confused, or hesitant speech.
4. Confused or irritable behavior.
5. Sweating for no apparent reason.
6. Uncharacteristic skin color- pale, flushed, or bluish skin.

These and other signs may occur alone or together. For example, a heart attack may be indicated by chest pain alone, or chest pain may be accompanied by breathing difficulty and sweating.

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Guidlines to Follow During Training

To protect yourself and other participants from infection, you should adhere to the following guidelines:

1. Provide a manikin.Wash your hands thoroughly before working with the manikin, and repeat hand washing before each new contact with the manikin.
2. Don't eat,drink, use tobacco products or chew gum when manikins are used.
3. Only stimulate clearing a partner's airway of foreign material; don't insert fingers in a colleague's mouth.
4. Practice mouth-to-mouth and mouth-to-mask techniques of ventilation on the manikin, not on other people.
5. Following use, scrub the manikin's face or mouth-nose pieces with a nailbrush using a solution of soap and water. Rinse the pieces in clean water and dry them before disinfecting.
6. Discard lung bags and other disposable items into an appropriate container; don't contaminate the manikins or the surrounding area with used equipment.

PHYSICAL STRESS AND INJURY

CPR requires strenuous activity. If you have a medical condition or disability, don't do CPR.

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