First aid

[Chrisz]

Reckon I saw more guns in Hackney than in my entire time in the Corps (including the trip down south!)

Kept me on my toes for sure!!!!

 

[4F]

I have been the first aider at work for the past 10 years and volunteered as I thought it would be useful to know for home life as well as work. 2 day re-qualification course every 3 years.

Only had to use it a few times and most of them have been on the kids

 

[ttcycle]

First Aider at work in my last job - think it's such important stuff to learn and feel that is should be on the curriculum for older schoolkids. Simple things such as the recovery position etc can be so important - I was on the bus the other day and this woman was pulled away from a man lying face down in the street- her friends, a group of men just pulled her away and walked on and no-one thought to put him into a recovery position and check properly to see if he was ok.

I just couldn't do that-no matter how rough the area, you check out how another person is if they're looking unwell (drink or none drink related).

 

[JamesAC]

First Aider at work in my last job - think it's such important stuff to learn and feel that is should be on the curriculum for older schoolkids. Simple things such as the recovery position etc can be so important - I was on the bus the other day and this woman was pulled away from a man lying face down in the street- her friends, a group of men just pulled her away and walked on and no-one thought to put him into a recovery position and check properly to see if he was ok.

I just couldn't do that-no matter how rough the area, you check out how another person is if they're looking unwell (drink or none drink related).

I was on a bus the other day, and a bloke stood up to get off, moaned loudly, and went down like a sack of spuds. One or two people grabbed him and tried to haul him to his feet, so I said to leave him down, and put him in the recovery position. I asked someone to get the driver to stop and radio for an ambulance. Meanwhile, some utterly ghastly young women kicked up a fuss, and demanded to know how long they were going to be held up for?

I heard about a Keen Type of WVS woman, who'd just done a First Aid course. She was on a bus, and saw a man lying face down in the gutter. She demanded that the bus be stopped, so she could render first aid. Off she jumps, turns the man over, begins CPR. The bloke pushes her off and says: "I don't know what your game is, missis, but I'm trying to unblock this f*cking drain!!"

 

[ttcycle]

I heard about a Keen Type of WVS woman, who'd just done a First Aid course. She was on a bus, and saw a man lying face down in the gutter. She demanded that the bus be stopped, so she could render first aid. Off she jumps, turns the man over, begins CPR. The bloke pushes her off and says: "I don't know what your game is, missis, but I'm trying to unblock this f*cking drain!!"

lol

 

[Midnight]

I was a First-Aider and defib trained in my last job at a large leisure facility. We often had over 1000 visitors daily, so there was always something every day. Mostly just minor cuts/wasp stings etc...with the odd broken limb, diabetic collapse, and one heart-attack.

The only thing I've had to deal with in the street was an epileptic seizure, but there was a case locally where a First-Aider who was first on the scene at a serious RTA was judged by paramedics to have almost certainly have saved two lives!

I agree that basic First-Aid should be taught in all schools. It's not for everyone, some people don't have the confidence or the stomach for it, but there's no doubt that it can be invaluable in some circumstances.

 

[DrSquirrel]

How many of you (us) would find it use full to have firstaid training, as riders, my self im first aid trained and had to use it on the road several times, about 2 week ago rider was knocked off and sufferd a dislocated wrist, my training helped, till the real guys got there, i had a guy that had been ko'd by a ladder hanging off a van, again training helped, and a nasty incident where a woman had been thrown off the back of a motorbike and was hit by and following lorry, as a first aider im sorry to say there was nothing i could do (sparing all the details only her leathers and helmet kept her contained) but the training helped me what to expexct and control the situation.................. Being a first aider even at a basic level can help save a mates life or a fellow rider.. are any of you guys trained ?..Mark

I am trained by St Johns standards lvl2 and 3, although really could do with 4 which more generally covers breaks. I want to do more, and am waiting for work to let me do a course next time a "slot" is available. I am also going to be doing a special paediatric course next month.

I think it should be done more as a matter of course (at least 3-4) at schools.


It should benefit everyone really regardless of what you do - else people will be doing CPR on people that still have a heartbeat and using the stupid motions they use on TV (which is because of the whole reason you shouldn't do chest compressions on a person without a stopped heart ).


Someone that I worked with was on the First Responder scheme, which I would have liked to have done - but don't want to carry the kit around in my car (no space, and im on the bike now).

 

[Amanda P]

I'm a first-aid-at-worker, and have been for quite a few years now. Fortunately, I've never had to deal with worse than cuts, burns and food poisoning.

Periodically, we do scenario training, where you work a normal day, but can expect to be called out to a staged accident. Some of them are quite frighteningly real and leave you shaking. They're rarely straightforward.

We also have an AED, and I go on refreshers for that (and one or two other things) every six months. It keeps your CPR up to scratch!

 

[fossyant]

Re First Aid on other cyclists, aren't you meant to check the bike over, tell them it's fine, couple of scratches etc....and give them a kick up the butt, HTFU, and send them on their way ?

 

[ufkacbln]

Get rid of religious education and teach something worthwhile.

You don't mean "Intelligent Design"?

 

[ufkacbln]

I am trained by St Johns standards lvl2 and 3, although really could do with 4 which more generally covers breaks. I want to do more, and am waiting for work to let me do a course next time a "slot" is available. I am also going to be doing a special paediatric course next month.

I think it should be done more as a matter of course (at least 3-4) at schools.


It should benefit everyone really regardless of what you do - else people will be doing CPR on people that still have a heartbeat and using the stupid motions they use on TV (which is because of the whole reason you shouldn't do chest compressions on a person without a stopped heart ).


Someone that I worked with was on the First Responder scheme, which I would have liked to have done - but don't want to carry the kit around in my car (no space, and im on the bike now).

TV is actually a valid point.

Our Tlust's resuscitation documents clearly state that the accomplishments on TV are unrealistic and whilst Charlie Fairhead might have a 95% success rate it does not happen in real life

 

[Suerdusty]

I run a St John Division in my spare time, and agree that everyone should learn the basics of First Aid which at the end of the day is mostly common sense and confidence. Going back a few years one of my twelve year old cadets was the first on the scene (with her parents) at an RTA, she took charge detailing her parents what to do, and cared for 3 casualties in 2 cars until the Emergency Services arrived.

 

[Mark_Robson]

It should benefit everyone really regardless of what you do - else people will be doing CPR on people that still have a heartbeat and using the stupid motions they use on TV (which is because of the whole reason you shouldn't do chest compressions on a person without a stopped heart ).

Funnily enough the CPR guidelines were changed a few years ago to encourage people to administer CPR if they were in the slightest doubt that a person may not be breathing.
The old colour, pulse and rescue breath steps were removed and the first aider is now taught to check for breathing and if in doubt go straight into the 30 to 2 routine. The logic being that it's better to perform CPR on a beating heart than to not perform CPR on a stopped heart.

We now use a Defib at work that takes out all the guess work and talks you through the defib process.

 

[addictfreak]

The purpose of CPR is not to re-start the heart, but to pump oxygenated blood round the body to prevent tissue death.
Survival rates of casualties who are purely given CPR is actually quite low.
The main aim is basically to keep the blood pumping until a defib and/or drugs can be administered. Even then for every minute a casualty goes without a defib being applied their chances of survival decrease by 10%.

 

[addictfreak]

Mark

You are partially right in what you say, however rescue breaths do still exist.
5 rescue breaths and 1 minutes CPR should be given to children and victims of drowning, before a lone rescuer would go for help.
ABCs always used to be first, but I believe that checking for a pulse was removed as it was thought that the lay man would have difficulty finding it. So now its Airway, Breathing then into CPR.