We often overlook the basic and important things in our day to day life and First Aid kit is one of those. It is easy to maintain and will be very useful when things go wrong. When my son has fallen on the computer table and had a cut to his hand or when one of my friends fainted during our vacation, the first aid kit helped me to provide immediate relief to them and reduced mental pressure on others around.
Imagine if something severe happens to an elder person in the home and there is no basic first aid kit available. Imagine while you are on a vacation and there is an injury for one of your friend or family member or yourself and you don’t have first aid kit with you. It’s better to be prepared than to react only after something worse happens.
Having a first aid kit always in reach and learning the basic first techniques might help you save yourselves or your loved ones during emergency situations.
1. Have a first Aid kit with you always.
Be it your home or while going on vacation or in your vehicle always have a first Aid Kit with you.
9 basic items a first aid kit should have:
· Bandages/ Band-Aids.
· Cotton.
· Small scissor / Knife.
· Burn cream and Antibiotic cream.
· Gauze dressing (Often called dressing cloth in India).
· Thermometer.
· Basic medicine like painkillers, fever, headache and cold\cough. For kids have all infant medicines.
· Cleansing wipes.
· First Aid instruction booklet and emergency contacts like (1092/102/108/181) and other location specific contacts.
The above list is just the basic items we should maintain and there are many other items that can be added based on situation/need. Make sure you place this kit in a fixed place where you or your family members can reach when needed. Once in a while keep checking expiry dates of the items in the kit.
2. Below are basic First Aid techniques everyone should be aware of.
In case of emergency situations and while waiting for the emergency medical services to arrive the below tips if followed correctly you could save someone’s life or at least these will help in reducing the severity of the damage. There are many real life examples where due to lack this basic knowledge of first aid techniques or by not following the first aid techniques correctly people have lost their own self and often their loved ones. Now an important thing to remember is, it is always recommended to consult the doctor after any kind of injuries as they are qualified and trained professionals to handle these and can assure us what may or may not go wrong.
· Call for emergency services nearby. The first step always should be to contact emergency services as soon as possible. Where ever you live or where ever you travel to keep the emergency contact details of that particular area in your mobile with prefixes like ICE (In Case of Emergency) or EN (Emergency Numbers) or etc.
· Next important step is if you are not sure how to do the first aid please avoid doing it.
· Try to be as calm as possible and assure the patient respective emergency service has been contacted and on the way.
· For all the below situations, you first need to decide whether you have time to take the patient to a nearby hospital or you need to call for an ambulance or you need to call for any other emergency services available nearby or you need to perform the first aid first.
In case of Bleeding:
· Apply pressure on the wound and if bleeding is normal then try to wash the wound and cover it with a cloth.
· If heavily bleeding, do not try to clean as this may cause much damage.
In case of Burns:
· Use water only in case of a burn, to cool the burnt part. DO NOT use ice.
· Hold the burnt area gently under water.
· Do NOT try to put a plaster or any bandages on burnt area, this may stick to the burnt part and cause much trouble.
· Cover the person with a wet cloth.
· If eyes are burning due to any liquids like perfume and all, clean eyes with water first.
In case of Faint:
· If someone is feeling faint, ask them to lie down on their back and raise their legs up.
In case of a Heart attack:
· During a heart attack, make the person sit and rest.
· Loosen any tight clothing.
· If already any medicine is being taken for chest pain give it.
All above first aid steps are very basic and many other detailed steps can be found online in many of the websites.
If any other basic first aid tips that are easy to follow and are helpful during emergency situations, please add in the comments section below.
Thanks VV!!