May 10th, 2011The Importance of Knowing First Aid
There is an importance of understanding how to give first aid or CPR. Taking a class on first aid can be done at a local community center or hospital. Whilst taking such a class, these are the items an individual will most likely learn. As a person learns what to do in their first aid class, they will get taught the A-B-C?s of first aid.
Now, this does not mean A-B-C as in bullet points, no, this is a mnemonic motto. So, while administering first aid to anybody, they ought to be receiving help from a trained person for clearing their Airway, Breathing properly or Circulation in their heart.
An airway which is blocked has to be attended to immediately. Being able to clear anyone?s airway is important for supporting their life. If the airway is not open, it will most likely affect that person?s mind and body functions. In turn, this will cause a sudden deterioration of that person?s life.
As you can see, having an open airway permits a person to respond to you and sustain their life. The open airway also keeps oxygen going to the brain. Without oxygen to our brain, there may be permanent damage too. Just as important as opening a person?s airway is, so too is getting them to breathe again.
These two aspects, airway and breathing, may seem the same to you, but they have two separate functions for a first aid responder to achieve. When it comes to breathing, that person will need some help. Once the airway is open, they might not be breathing properly.
Having a person breathe, on their own, is just as crucial as having an open airway. Both of these functions need the passage of oxygen to the brain and this is why the goal of a first aid responder is to get that person breathing again without assistance.
Just as vital as opening the airway and breathing is, so also is allowing circulation to the heart. The human heart is an amazing muscle and when a person?s heart is in trouble, they will require urgent help in order to make certain that they remain alive.
If the human heart is not getting oxygen and beating as meant, there may be a loss of life. Every step given to an injured person, from a first aid responder, is important. Every action received, in the order given, is also important.
All three A-B-C measures above, having been learned in a CPR class, and then used as taught by a first aid responder is vital to the survival of the injured person. In fact, seeing if a person has a pulse and is breathing is the first thing to be done while helping a person in trouble.
As recently as 2010, the American Heart Association requested that the A-B-C?s be converted to C-A-B. Now, when performing first aid on an adult, it is recommended to do chest compressions first, and then see if the airway is open and if a person can breathe on their own. The original A-B-C?s can still be utilized on infants and children.
Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on many topics, but is at present busy with wholesale first aid kits. If you have an interest in RC vehicles, please come over to our website now at First Aid Courses Online.