Basic First Aid for

Medical Emergencies
 First Aid
- is the temporary and immediate care given to a
person who is injured or who suddenly becomes
ill.

OBJECTIVES:
• To alleviate suffering
• To prevent further injury or danger
• To prolong life.

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 Four Basic Rules

1.2.Call
Bringforhelp
helptoimmediately
the victim
4.3.Do no further
Check harm
the ABCs

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 FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF
FIRST AID:
A. SURVEY THE SCENE

Components:
• Assess the safety of the scene
• Determine if the victim is injured or ill
• Determine the number of victims
• Determine the resources needed

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 Getting to victims who are not
readily accessible
Fire
• never approach burning building or vehicle
• if inside burning building, crawl and maintain
1 foot distance from the floor
• never open closed doors or windows

Unstable Structures
• assess probable location and number of
victims, and their possible injuries

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 Motor Vehicle Accidents
• assign bystander to direct traffic away
from the accident
• place safety flares, or reflectors well
beyond the accident in both directions
• remove any safety threats at the site of
accident (gasoline, unstable wreckage,
etc)
• if victim needs to be moved due to threat
to life, immobilize neck with blanket and
cut away any jammed seat belts.
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 Electrical Hazards
- look for downed power lines and always
consider it to be “live”
- shut off power source
- never try to move downed power wires
yourself

Water
- never enter the water unless you have
been specifically trained in water rescue
- if the victim is near you, pull the victim to
shore (may use branch, pole,etc)
- if victim is far, tie a buoyant object to the
end of the rope
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 Hostility and Violence
- maintain safe distance and let
family member of friend defuse the
situation

- never approach a violent victim, or

an armed person, not until police has it
under control

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 B. Activate EMS Assistance/ Call for Help

If alone- shout for help

If not alone or with bystanders, let them call for
help/ambulance/paramedics
Give the following information:
– exact location of victim
– phone number where you can be
reached
– information about the victim’s injury
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 C. Primary Survey
– Check for consciousness
– Check ABCHS

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 D. Secondary Survey

- a closer look at the victim once life-

threatening conditions are controlled and
vitals signs are recorded.
- perform a quick but thorough head-to-toe
assessment

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 No Breathing
Administer CPR:
• Lay the person on his or her back
• Give chest compressions
• Tilt head slightly
• Breathe into the person’s mouth
• Continue until EMS personnel arrive

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 Bleeding
• Stop the flow of blood
• Wear gloves
• Cover the wound
• Apply pressure
• If a body part has
been amputated,
put it on ice

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 • Use a sterile dressing or clean cloth
• Fold to form pad
• Apply pressure directly over wound
• Fasten with bandage; knot over wound
• If bleeding continues, add second
pressure dressing

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 Bleeding: Pressure Points
Apply pressure where artery lies near
skin over bone.

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 Bleeding: Pressure Points
Use pressure point closest to wound,
between wound and heart
Superficial arteries: use flat surface of
several fingers
Femoral artery, use heel of one hand

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 Tourniquet
Absolute last resort
in controlling
bleeding:
Life or the limb

Once a
tourniquet is
applied, it is not
to be removed ,
only by a doctor
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 Cuts

Apply pressure with a clean cloth, elevation

• Can be cleaned better when bleeding stops
Large and deep: seek medical attention
• Maintain pressure
Minor cuts
• Soap and water
• cover with antibiotic ointment and dressing.
If cut may need sutures, seek medical care as
soon as possible

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 Abrasions

• Must get wound clean

• Clean wound with soap and water
• Wrap in dry bandage
• Clean at least twice a day till healed

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 Puncture Wounds
DO NOT remove large objects
such as knives or sticks, call
911

For minor wounds, wash with

soap and water
• Antibiotic ointment
• Bandage

The person may need a tetanus

booster injection

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 Stinging Insects
Remove the stinger with the scraping motion of a
fingernail
DO NOT pull the stinger out
Put a cold compress on the bite
• Hydrocortisone cream
• Benadryl
Check for allergies
If hives, paleness, weakness, nausea, vomiting,
tightness in chest, breathing difficulty, or collapse
occur, call 911.
For spider bites, call the Poison Control Center or
hospital

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 EpiPen

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 How to use an Epipen:
Pull off gray safety cap.
Place black tip on thigh, at right angle to leg
Press hard into thigh until Auto-Injector mechanism
functions
• Hold in place for several seconds
• The EpiPen unit should then be removed and
discarded
• Massage the injection area for 10 seconds.

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 NOSEBLEEDS
With person sitting,
squeeze nostrils together
between thumb and index
finger for 10 minutes
Ice on forehead
If bleeding persists, seek
medical attention– but
maintain pressure

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 Shock
• Lay the victim down
• Cover
• Raise feet

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 Anaphylactic Shock

• Call for help ASAP

• Start CPR if necessary

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 Heart Attack
• Call 911
• Make victim comfortable
• Loosen tight clothing
• Keep victim still
• Don’t give stimulants

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 Choking
• Ask a person to speak
or cough
• Deliver 5 back blows
• Perform abdominal
thrusts
• Repeat sequence of back
blows and abdominal
thrusts

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 If Abdominal
Thrusts Don’t Work
• Call 911
• Finger sweep
• Abdominal thrusts
• Check ABCs
• Perform CPR if
not breathing

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 Partial airway obstruction with good air
exchange
• Forceful cough
• Wheezing in between breaths

*Stay with the person and encourage them

to cough

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 Partial airway obstruction with poor air
exchange
• Weak, ineffective cough
• High-pitched noises while breathing

* This type of obstruction should be dealt

with as if it were a complete obstruction

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 Complete airway obstruction
• Unable to breathe, speak or cough
• Clutching at his/her throat (universal
distress signal for choking)

If the person is still conscious, perform

Heimlich maneuver

If the person becomes unconscious, call 911

and do CPR

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 Electrical Shock
Don’t touch!
Turn power off
Call 911
Remove person
from live wire
Check for breathing

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 Review
Do you understand first-aid
procedures for:
• No breathing?
• Bleeding?
• Shock?
• Heart attack?
• Choking?
• Electrical shock?

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 Eye Injuries
• Splashes
• Particles in eye
• Blow to eye
• Cuts near eye
• Penetrating objects

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 Burns
• First-degree burns—Reddened, painful skin
• Second-degree burns—Blistering
• Third-degree burns—Charring, deep tissue damage

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 First Aid: First Degree Burns

• Cold Water
• NO OINTMENTS

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 First Aid: Second Degree
Burns
• Immerse in cold water
• Apply cool compresses
• Blot dry & apply sterile gauze or clean cloth for
protection
• DO NOT break blisters or remove tissue

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 DO NOT use an antiseptic
preparation, ointment, spray or
home remedy on a severe burn.

If arm or legs are affected, keep

them elevated.

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 First Aid: Third Degree Burns

• DO NOT remove pieces of adhered

particles of charred clothing.
• Cover burn with thick, sterile or freshly
laundered cloth.
• If hands or legs involved, elevate.

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 • DO NOT immerse or apply ice water to
burn area.
• Transport ASAP.
• DO NOT apply ointment, commercial
preparations, or other home remedies.

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 Exposure to
Hazardous Materials
• Eyes
• Skin
• Inhalation
• Ingestion

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 Burns of the Eyes

First Aid:
• Flush face, eyelid, & eye for 15 –
20 minutes ASAP
• Avoid rubbing eye
• Cover eye
• Seek medical attention ASAP

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 Chemical Burns of the Skin
First Aid:
• Remove clothing
• Flush with water ASAP for 15 – 20
minutes
• Get name / source of Chemical
• Seek Medical Attention ASAP

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 Broken Bones

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 Fractures

A break or crack in a bone

Cause: most commonly a MVA or:

• Accident related to a fall & recreational and sports
activities

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 Signs and Symptoms
May hear a bone snap
Pain & tenderness, difficulty moving injured
body part
Report of grating sensation
Shortening of injured leg/arm
Unusual angle or position of body part

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 Major Fractures
Stop any bleeding
Immobilize
• Splint
• Don’t try to re-align
Treat for shock
• Head down
• Legs up
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 Fractures and Sprains:
PRICE
P-- protect the injured limb from further injury
by not using the joint
R-- rest the injured limb
I-- ice the area
C-- compress the area with an elastic wrap or
bandage
E-- elevate the injured limb whenever possible
to help prevent or limit swelling

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 Splinting a Fracture

Splint body part in position as found

Prevent injured area from moving
Check for circulation before and after splinting

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 Head, Neck or Spinal Injury
Symptoms:
• Change in consciousness
• Difficulty breathing
• Impaired vision
• Tingling or numbness in hands, fingers, feet
and/or toes
• Loss of balance
• Headache & vomiting

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 First Aid
Keep lying down
Leave in position found in
Call EMS
If you do need to move, logroll & support head and
neck

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 Dislocations

Don't delay medical care

Don't move the joint
Put ice on the injured joint

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 Sunburn
Avoidance
• Cover up: hats, sleeves
• Sunscreen
Cool bath or shower
Leave blisters intact

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 Heat Illness
AVOID The Problem
• DRINK even if not “thirsty”
Heat Cramps: rest, cool down, DRINK
Heat Exhaustion = threatened Heatstroke
• Nausea, faint
• Pale, clammy & cool
• Give fluids, active cooling
Heatstroke  Call 911
• Hot, shock, unconscious

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 Heat Exhaustion
• Move to cool place
• Lay victim down
• Elevate feet
• Loosen clothing
• Give fluids
• Apply cool compresses

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 Heatstroke

• Immediately call 911

• Cool the person down
• Monitor

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 Fainting
• Check for breathing
• Administer CPR if
necessary
• Call 911 if more than
a few minutes
• If conscious, lay the
victim down with feet
elevated

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 Epileptic Seizures
Stay with the person – consider calling 911

Protect the person from injury

• Move all furniture or equipment that is nearby
• Do not hold or restrain the person
• Do not put anything in the person’s mouth
• Loosen clothing
• Roll the person on his/her side

After the seizure activity has stopped:

• Perform rescue breathing if person is blue or not
breathing (if CPR certified)
• If breathing, lay person on side

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 TEETH
If knocked out, find the tooth and rinse it gently without
touching the root
Insert and gently hold the tooth in its socket or
transport the tooth in cow’s milk
If broken, save the pieces. Gently clean the injured
area with warm water. Place a cold compress to
reduce swelling.
Send the person directly to the dentist or an
emergency room. Time is important!

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 Key Points to Remember
Medical emergencies can happen anytime.
Act quickly, calmly, and correctly.
Consider being certified in first aid
and CPR.

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