IN CASE OF EMERGENCY
The Importance of First Aid Skills
When we have children, it is vital that we
understand the rudiments of First Aid. As
parents, we all know that we would never
forgive ourselves if we’d failed to do
something simple that would have prevented
our child or someone else’s child from
dying. It really is a question of life or death.
A large number of studies of the brain have been
undertaken over the last 20 years. From these
studies one important finding has shown that people
who practise a skill over and over again will go into
‘action mode’ rather than shutting down in panic
when something happens that calls on that skill.
This was never more evident than in the September
11th attacks on the World Trade Center in which the
companies that had had regular fire escape training
and drilling fared comparatively better in being able
to save their workforce because they knew exactly
where to go and what to do.
So time spent learning and practising First Aid skills
on a First Aid course, whilst it may seem difficult to
fit into our busy lives, could possibly be the best
thing we could ever do. Basic knowledge of First Aid
includes how to treat and assess burns, bites,
poisoning, fractures, bleeding, convulsions, asthma,
choking, breathing problems, chest pains etc.
As one in eleven children suffers from asthma in the
UK, it is likely that we will come across someone
who is having an asthma attack. So, here a few
pointers that may help. BUT these hints are no
substitute for thorough knowledge of First Aid and,
as we’ve discussed above, First Aid classes are the
way forward.
First Aid advice from St John Ambulance:
In an asthma attack the muscles of the air passages
in the lungs go into spasm and the linings of theairways swell. As a result, the airways become
narrowed and breathing becomes difficult.
Children with asthma usually deal well with their own
attacks by using a blue reliever inhaler, however you
may be required to assist someone having an
asthma attack or having an attack for the first time.
Symptoms:
- Difficulty in breathing, with a very prolonged
breathing-out phase.
- Wheezing when breathing out
- Difficulty speaking and whispering
- Distress and anxiety
- Coughing
- Possible grey-blue tinge to the lips, earlobes
and nailbeds.
Treatment:
- Your aims during an asthma attack are to ease
the breathing and if necessary get medical help.
- You need to keep the child calm and reassure
them.
- If they have a blue reliever inhaler then
encourage them to use it. Children may have a
spacer device and you should encourage them
to use that with their inhaler also. It should relieve
the attack within a few minutes.
- Encourage the child to breathe slowly and deeply.
- Encourage the child to sit in a position that they
find most comfortable, often leaning forward with
arms resting on a table or the back of a chair.
- Do not lie the child down.
- A mild asthma attack should ease within 3
minutes but if it doesn’t, encourage the child to
use their inhaler again.
Caution:
If this is the first attack, or if the attack is severe and
any one of the following occurs:
The inhaler has no effect after 5 minutes or they
have no inhaler
The child is becoming worse
Breathlessness makes talking difficult
The child becomes exhausted
Dial 999
(or 112) for an ambulance
Encourage the casualty to use their inhaler every
5 to 10 minutes. Monitor and record the
breathing and pulse rate every 10 minutes. If the
patient becomes unconscious open the airway
and check their breathing and be prepared to
give emergency aid.