First Aid Basics and Legal Considerations

First Aid Basics

• First aid involves immediate, non-medical care that is adequate and temporary
• This care is given to injured people or those with sudden illnesses until they can receive hospital care
• Legal considerations are important when providing first aid
• It is essential to be aware of legal aspects when giving first aid

Risks To Avoid

• Impericia means performing actions without technical knowledge
• Negligence means not performing a known procedure
• Imprudence means acting beyond what is necessary

Obligations For Patient Care

• One should ask for help due to the complexity of working alone; the local emergency line should be dialled
• Assess the safety of the scene for both oneself and the patient
• Biosafety measures involve using personal protective equipment
• Introduce oneself to the patient, offering assistance
• Conduct an initial patient assessment, including airway management
• Begin basic CPR if necessary
• Provide patient information to emergency services upon their arrival

Biosafety and Protection

• All patients and bodily fluids should be treated as potentially infectious
• Essential precautions should be taken to prevent the spread of infections
• To avoid direct contact with blood and bodily fluids, protective gear should be used
• Gloves, face shields or goggles, masks, and contaminated material disposal bags are essential

Scene Assessment

• When evaluating an injured person, ensure the area is safe to prevent further harm to the caregiver and others
• Key factors for evaluation are safety, the scene, and the situation
• Primary consideration is safety using the rule "me first, me second, me always"
• Preventing oneself from becoming a victim is key
• When assessing the scene, ask: Is the scene safe? What happened? How many people are hurt? Is there anyone else who can help?

Initial Patient Assessment

• Procedures should be systematic and completed within six minutes
• The initial stages include the initial assessment, primary assessment and a detailed secondary assessment

Initial Assessment

• First step of initial evaluation is scene safety and assessing the patient
• Avoid becoming a victim by prioritizing personal safety
• Always take proper safety precautions

Primary Assessment

• Focus on airway management and cervical spine control
• Ensure proper ventilation
• Check circulation and control any bleeding
• Assess level of consciousness - are they alert?
• Expose and examine the body

Secondary Assessment

• Focus on a head to toe assessment
• Check vital signs
• Provide stabilization

General Information on Vital Signs

• Vital signs indicate the physiological state of vital organs

Key Vital Signs

• Pulse rate or heart rate
• Temperature
• Rate of respiration
• Pupil Reflex
• Blood Pressure

Defining Vital Signs

• Vital signs reflect the physiological condition of essential organs

Measuring Vital Signs

• Temperature can be measured with a thermometer
• Blood pressure can be determined with a sphygmomanometer
• Breath sounds can be identified with a stethoscope
• Additional, a clock and pulse oximeter may be helpful

Heart Rate

• Palpated pulses indicate blood flow through arteries
• Heart contraction and relaxation affect blood flow in the arteries during systole and diastole
• Normal adult pulse rate: 60-100 beats per minute
• Normal pulse for children: 90-140

Temperature

• Temperature reflects relative body heat/cold
• It is connected to the body's metabolism
• Temperature helps maintain healthy biological processes
• Body temperature is affected by a person's age, activity, and time of day

Respiration

• Ventilation is a process of gas exchange in the lungs that involves an exchange of gases between the body and the atmosphere
• Inhalation brings oxygen into the lungs
• Exhalation removes carbon dioxide
• Respiratory rate variability depends on exercise, gender, haemorrhage and age
• The normal rate for newborns is 30-40 RPM, children 18-24 RPM, adults 16-20 RPM and older adults 12-16 RPM

Pupillary Reflex

• The pupil's reactions to external factors may indicate neurological damage or death
• Light causes pupil constriction, darkness causes dilation
• Drugs, trauma, excitement, and surface irritation can alter pupil response

Pupillary Reflex Defined

• Isocoria is defined as normal dilation of teh eye, between (4 – 6 mm)
• Mydriasis is the term for when the pupal dialtes more than normal
• Miosis means the pupal is smaller than normal
• Anisocoria means one pupal is constricted while the other is dilated.

Blood Pressures

• Blood pressure is the force of blood against arterial walls
• Pressure is vital for circulating blood, oxygen and nutrients
• Blood pressure measurement has two components: systolic and diastolic

Systolic vs Diastolic

• Systolic pressure is pressure exerted when the heart contracts and pushes blood into the body
• Diastolic pressure is when the heart relaxes between beats allowing it to fill with blood

Overview of Assessment Types

• Primary assessment is vital for identifying and dealing with immediate life threats
• It should be rapid and effective
• Can be applied to patients who may have consciousness questions, due to showing clear signs of unconsciousness

ABCDE Primary Survey

• (A) Airway: Open the airway and control the cervical spine
• (B) Breathing: Assess ventilation
• (C) Circulation: Ensure circulation and control bleeding
• (D) Disability: Evaluate level of consciousness
• (E) Exposure: Expose and examine the body

Managing the Airway

• Assess the airway for patency and protect the cervical spine
• If there isn't a verbal response attempt the jaw thrust technique
• When a cervical injury is suspected one can use the jaw thrust technique
• Open the victim's mouth to check for foreign objects
• Clear any visible foreign objects with a finger sweep

Breathing Assessment

• Assess for the presence and effectiveness of breathing

Breathing Detection

• Look for chest movement
• Listen for breath sounds
• Feel for air movement at the mouth or nose

Circulation Assessment

• Assess for the presence of circulation
• Pulse, cough, respiration, and movement are signs of circulation

Checking for Carotid Pulse

• When checking for pulse, search for the cartoid artery
• To locate it, find the windpipe and find where the cricoid cartilage is
• The pulse may be palpated to the right or the left of the cartilage, be sure to check each side individually
• Infant patients can have thier brachial or femoral arteries palpated

Neurological Deficit Assessment

• Determine the individual's state of consciousness

ADVI Scale

• The ADVI method is a process for checking the consciousness level of patients
• "OA" means the person is alert and oriented to their surroundings
• "OD" means the person responds only to painful stimulus
• "OV" means the person is responding only to verbal queues
• "I" means the person is unresponsive to any stimulus, indicating that they are unconscious

Exposure Assessment

• To fully do teh assessment look for any injuries that aren't immediately obvious
• This protects against undiagnosed hypothermia
• Patient modesty should be preserved

Secondary Assessment Detail

• The secondary assessment collects the sensations the individual is able to verbalize
• This includes the intensity and area for the pain
• Includes feeling nauseous or lightheaded, and abnormal feelings of cold or heat
• Additional info can be detected by testing but can only be found if one conducts a detailed assessment

Common Secondary Injuries

• Include swelling, hemorrhaging or bleeding
• Decolourization where the colour of the skin has changed e.g. bruising
• Deformity a change in the shape of a body part

Performing Secondary Assessment

• Involves three steps, check vital signs, examinining each body segment indidually, and documenting a history of the incident

Examining Vital Signs

• Involves monitoring respiration, pulse, blood pressure & temperature
• Check all areas including the head to toe, the upper/lower body zones
• Document existing allergies, medications. existing illnesses, the final eaten substances, and the scene conditions

Evaluation of a Patient Includes

• Examining the patients head, neck, thorax and abdomen
• Palpating the extremities and pelvic areas
• Checking appearance of skin in case it looks pale or feels cold/hot
• Establishing priorities is checking if a patient needs immediate care or further stabilization
• Ensure patient comfort by providing basic first aid, like stabilizing sprains, wound dressings, etc.