First Aid Basics

• First aid refers to the initial and immediate care given to someone who is experiencing a minor or serious illness or injury.
• The goal of first aid is to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, and promote recovery until professional medical services are available.
• Regulations in many countries specify the minimum level of first aid provisions required in various situations.
• This often includes mandatory first aid training in schools and the provision of specific training or equipment in the workplace.

The Three P's

• The primary aim of first aid is to prevent death or serious injury from becoming worse.
• The key aims of first aid can be summarized using the acronym "the three P's."

Preserve Life

• Involves saving lives and minimizing the risk of death.
• Correct first aid should help reduce the patient's pain level and calm them during the evaluation and treatment process.

Prevent Further Harm

• Involves addressing external factors that may be causing harm, and using first aid techniques to prevent the condition from worsening, such as applying pressure to stop bleeding.

Promote Recovery

• Involves initiating the recovery process from the illness or injury, which may include completing a treatment like applying a plaster to a small wound.

Vital First Aid Skills

Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)

• It serves as the fallback protocol underlying all other first aid principles.
• CPR enables a rescuer to revive someone in cardiac arrest by ensuring oxygen continues to move to their brain until medical help arrives or the person recovers.

Management of Choking

• These skills enable a bystander to use suitable techniques to clear an obstructed airway.
• If a patient has a blockage in the upper airway, there is a risk that they will go into respiratory arrest, therefore these skills will allow you to clear that airway and save the victim.

Management of a Suspected Spinal/Head Injury

• Incidents affecting the spine and head should always be treated as serious.
• Understanding the principles of spinal and head injuries is essential to saving lives and preventing further injury.

Correct Administration of an Epipen or Anapen

• Anaphylaxis (severe allergic reaction) is a life-threatening condition.
• Administering adrenaline using an auto-injector like an Epipen or Anapen is effective first aid for anaphylaxis.

Management of Bleeding

• Severe bleeding can quickly become life-threatening.
• It is important to learn first aid principles of how to control bleeding since it can save someone's life.

Management of Burns

• Burns can be extremely painful wounds.
• Each degree of burn requires a unique treatment approach.