First Aid

Roadside First Aid

BASIC EMERGENCY FIRST AID

AT THE ROADSIDE

This section of the Bikesafe website has been produced by Alick Wheeler, a qualified EMT and First Aid Instructor. Alick has been teaching / practising First Aid / Ambulance Aid in the UK and abroad, to adults and children, for over 20 years.

The information contained on the following pages is provided as a general guide to the main principles of First Aid treatment and is based upon recognised basic medical principals. Knowledge alone while useful, can not substitute for proper regularised training. You are strongly recommended to enrol on a proper First Aid course with a reputable First Aid training provider.

None of us want to be involved in an accident but the fact is that if you travel enough, you will either come across one or be involved in one. While there is usually no shortage of bystanders, only a few are likely to have done any First Aid training and most of them are unlikely to have taken any form of re-training. So if you are thinking about learning First Aid, carry on. Don't let the seriousness of the subject put you off, saving a life is easy.

First Aid put simply " is the FIRST treatment given to a casualty at the scene of an accident prior to the arrival of a more medically qualified person". Originally First Aid
was very simple. You reassured the casualty but did not move them, you dealt with what is known as the ABC of life by protecting the Airway, checking for Breathing and Circulation (i.e. heart beat), and dealing with any bleeding. Unfortunately, over the years, most training organisations have made the subject very complex by building in as much theoretical information as possible into their courses, which, last only a few hours or days. The result leaves most students confused or unsure of their abilities to do First Aid without doing something wrong.

The fact is that when you strip away all of the nice to know information and stop trying to deal with every single injury, First Aid reverts to being a very simple skill, the basics of which can be learnt in a few hours. The key is simple. You don't need to know all about how the body works, you just need to understand what effects a certain injury will have on a casualty and how you can help minimise the problem or compensate for it until the Ambulance crew take over. In terms of actual treatment, all you need to worry about is dealing with the ABC of Life.

Everyone knows you should not move a casualty if they have had a violent accident (such as being hit by a car, falling from a height) as the force of impact could have damaged their spine. So if you are not going to move the casualty, do you need to worry if they have broken their arm? If the Ambulance has been called, do you need to worry about trying to do complicated bandages to immobilise injured limbs? No, what you need to do is to concentrate on the things which will keep your patient alive like, protecting their Airway, checking for Breathing and blood Circulation and dealing with blood loss. These are the things which can kill your casualty before the Ambulance arrives, not a broken arm. Deal with the essentials and you could end up saving another persons life.

Fortunately the tide is changing and more organisations are now going back to the keep it simple approach. The next few pages provide basic First Aid information to help you deal with the more common life threatening conditions you are likely to meet at the road side. Remember knowledge alone is not enough and can not replace the need for proper organised hands on training. So go on, don't just read these pages, learn a life skill, get on a course and learn to save a life.

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