First aid - basic - what to do
bleeding; bleed; burn; scald; broken bone; bone; poison; unconscious; coma; faint; bee sting; snake bite; breathing; breathe; blood; shock; recovery position; first aid; danger; response; airway; circulation; safe; resusitation. ;
Contents
The first aid actions in this topic should only be used by someone who has done a first aid course and knows exactly what to do.
What is first aid?
| If your friend has an accident then the first person there will be the first aider or the person who will help her until others get there. |
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| First aid is about using your commonsense in ways that will keep your friend safe without doing harm to her. |
| Its a great idea for older children and adults to do a first aid course so that you know what to do to help others. |
| At school, all teachers and other staff will know what to do; in other places ask an adult to help. |
| Here is something to help you remember what to do if you are the only person around and your friend has been hurt badly. |
D.R.A.B.C.D
The letters stand for
D = Danger
R = Response
A = Airway
B = Breathing
C = CPR
D = Defibrillate
Danger
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Before you do anything to help your friend make sure that it is safe for you to help her. |
| If it is safe for you but your friend is in a dangerous place, like the middle of the road if she has fallen off her bike, then get her to move to a safer place. |
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If you have to move her yourself, move her by dragging her by both ankles - slowly and carefully to the side of the road. |
| If her legs are injured you may have to pull her by her elbows or wrists with her hands above her head. Go slowly so that you don't bang her head. |
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Never move an unconscious person who may have a bad injury (like being hit by a car or falling from a tree) unless there is no other way of keeping her safe.
NEVER stand out in the road trying to make cars stop. This is very dangerous.
Send someone for help if you can.
Response
Call out to your friend.
- Tap her face or shoulder gently if she seems to be asleep.
- Ask her what happened.
- Ask her where she hurts.
If she doesn't answer or move she could be unconscious.
If she is unconscious and lying on her back she may need to be turned onto her side to make sure that she can breathe well.
Send someone to get help or dial 000 for an ambulance.
Airway
Tilt her head back to open her airway.
Look and feel if anything is in your friend's mouth and scoop it out with your middle fingers.
Turn your friend onto her side into the recovery position. |
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The pictures will show you how.
Step 1
One arm out, the other arm folded to touch the shoulder
Step 2
Support the head and lift the knee, keep your knees close to the body of your friend. Roll her gently away from you.
Step 3
Recovery position
Do this very carefully and slowly so that you do not cause any other injury.
Breathing
Check to see if she is breathing.
You can do this by watching or feeling her lower chest to see if it is moving up and down.
You can check by putting your ear close to her face, so that you can feel or listen to find out if there is air coming out of her mouth.
What if your friend is not breathing?
You need to start C.P.R.
CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation)
You should not try this unless you have been trained to do so
CPR, Cardio Pulmonary Resustation (say: car-dee-o, pul-mon-ary, ree-suss-sy-tay-shun), needs to be started if there are no signs of life. That is, if the person is not breathing, moving, no pulse.
CPR is when the first-aider gives 30 compressions on the lower half of the breastbone, then 2 breaths, continuing this until the person is breathing again.
C.P.R. can be difficult to do well. The following steps are ones that are taught to people doing a First Aid course.
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- Turn your friend onto her back again.
- Kneel at her side.
- Tilt her head backwards like the diagram.
- With your hand on the top of her head hold her head tilted back.
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- Open her mouth using your thumb and first finger under her chin.
- Close her nose by resting your cheek across her nostrils (OR use the thumb and first finger of the hand that is holding her head tilted) to close her nostrils.
- Breathe 2 quick puffs of air into your friend's mouth.
- Check to see if she is breathing.
- If she is not, then CPR needs to be started by someone trained to do. Get help quickly if you are not trained.
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If your friend starts breathing again.
- Carefully, but quickly, turn her back onto her side as she may vomit (throw up).
- If she does vomit, then you may need to clear her mouth again if she is not fully awake
- Stay with her.
While you are waiting for the ambulance:
| Check to see if there is a pulse. |
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| Feel the side of your friend's neck. |
| Or find the pulse in her wrist (the drawings below show you how.) |
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If you can feel her pulse then count it for one minute so that you can let ambulance officers know of any changes.
Keep calm
Talk quietly to your friend.
Get help if you can.
If no-one is around stay with her until someone comes along. |
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Defibrillation
If a person has stoped breathing, then a machine called a defibrillator may be used. Many schools, offices, shopping centres and workplaces now have this machine and people who have been trained to use it.
Bleeding
Deal with any bleeding. See our topic "First aid - bleeding".
Answering your questions
What if my baby sister is not breathing and I am looking after her?
- Call the Telephone Emergency number immediately (000 in Australia). The person answering the call will get an ambulance to your house as quickly as possible.
- You need to tell them your address and what is the problem.
- Don't hang up the phone.
- They will tell you what to do to help your sister.
- They might tell you to go through the steps of D.R.A.B.C and to start C.P.R - if you know how to do it.
- It's a good idea to have a list of emergency numbers by your phone. Look at our topic on "Farm safety" and go to the section called 'emergency action planner' for some ideas on what numbers you may need.
- For a young child or baby you do not need to tilt the head back and you only do short puffs of breath rather than the bigger breaths you would use for a bigger person.
- Stay calm and don't feel bad if you cannot do C.P.R. It is difficult to do if you have not had any training.
Where can I do a First aid course?
- In Australia, you can ask about courses at Red Cross, St John Ambulance or your local Council may have courses running.
- Why not ask the Student Representative Council at your school to ask if there could be courses in Basic First Aid for all year 6 and 7 students? What a great student initiative that would be!
Dr Kate says
"The most important thing to remember about first aid is that you have to keep yourself safe. Always look out for danger and send for help as soon as possible. Just being there for your friend will make her feel better and you will be able to say what has happened when an adult or the ambulance people come along…..and that will be very helpful."
First aid - picture booklet
Click here to view the first aid booklet
We've collected this information to help you to understand important things about staying healthy and happy. However, if you feel sick or unhappy, it is important to tell your mum or dad, a teacher or another grown-up.