What is First Aid?
- By I DILLEY
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- 12 Sep, 2016
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In all our lives, whether at work, home or at play, it is essential that we all know how to assist someone who is sick, or has been injured.
First aid, as the term implies, is the initial treatment given to someone who is injured or sick, prior to professional medical assistance arriving and taking over from you.
By completing a first aid course it will not make you a doctor, paramedic or nurse but by applying common sense and some basic life support skills, as well as providing care and confidence in you treatment for the casualty, you will learn skills that will enhance their well-being and in some very serious cases, possibly save their life.
Your prompt, safe and effective treatment could make a difference between life and death.
As a qualified first aider, your priorities for the casualty fall into the following categories:
PRESERVE life
ALLEVIATE suffering
PREVENT further illness or injury
PROMOTE recovery
For instance, if your casualty is suffering a major blood loss as a result of a serious cut,then you can preserve life by offering treatment immediatley and not waiting for proffessional help to sort it out for you.If you do nothing your casualty could bleed to death.
We can prevent the condition from worsening by applying a secure sterile dressing on the injured part in order to control the blood loss and prevent the risk of infection.
We can promote recovery by treating the casualty for shock and ringing for an ambulance.
Our first aid courses at Universal Training Services Midlands Ltd are are fun,interactive and delivered to a very high standard and reasonably priced.
The HSE states that employers have a duty of care to render a first aid need to their employees should they become injured or ill in the workplace.
We deliver first aid courses on a regular basis both at our training venue or at company sites if this is preferred.
MANUAL HANDLING
MANUAL HANDLING is the handling of loads by HUMAN EFFORT, and can include lifting, putting down, pushing, pulling, carrying, intentional dropping or throwing or moving, by hand or bodily force.
Poor manual handling is the biggest cause of work-related injury, and the most common site of injury is the back. Back injuries range from sprains of the ligaments and strains in the muscles to more serious injuries such as slipped discs. Other injuries can include hernias, fractures; crush injuries, sprains and strains. All have one thing in common – PAIN!
Back injuries can result from a single wrong movement, but more commonly result from repeated stress on tired muscles.
Learning the correct manual handling techniques is essential in order to prevent injury and accidents.
Employers are required to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that hazardous manual handling operations are avoided. They must assess all hazardous manual handling operations which can’t be avoided, and then implement measures to reduce the risk of injury.
Employees also have responsibilities under Health & Safety Law. These are to:
• Take reasonable care of their own health & safety at work, and that of others who may be affected by their acts or omissions;
• Co-operate with their employer regarding health & safety;
• Use any equipment provided in accordance with the training and instructions given;
• Follow their employers’ systems of work to promote safety during the handling of loads.
THE BACK
The spine is made up of 33 bones called VERTEBRAE. Each vertebra has 4 joints, which enable them to move with respect to each other, thus giving the spine flexibility. The lower back or LUMBAR SPINE is the weakest part, as it carries the weight of the upper body, and therefore most likely to be damaged.
Between the vertebrae are the DISCS, made up of a jelly-like NUCLEUS, surrounded by a ring of tough fibres – the ANNULUS. The discs are firmly attached to the vertebrae, and act as shock absorbers when the vertebrae move. They have a poor blood supply, and therefore take a long time to heal if damaged.
Damage occurs by repeated stresses caused by stooping and twisting. This produces tiny tears in the annulus, which may lead to the contents of the nucleus bulging out through the annulus – referred to as a SLIPPED DISC.
