If you have done a basic first aid course and try your best to help then even if you make some mistakes then you have nothing to worry about. If you should know better because of proper medical training and do something really daft then you could potentially be sued. -- Alex Hermes: "We can't afford that! Especially not Zoidberg!" Zoidberg: "They took away my credit cards!" www.drzoidberg.co.uk www.sffh.co.uk www.ebayfaq.co.uk
Fairy nuff. That's what we did for a mate who's leg got smashed in an accident actually. After I straightened up the leg, my S.O. wrapped a jumper round the wound an held it tight. Someone said I shouldn't have straightened the leg, but the Paramedic told me I'd probably saved it by restoring the blood supply. Made him scream though :-( He now holds the record for the longest bone transport with an Ilizaroff frame by growing around 10" of new shinbone.
However in a choice 'tween tourniquet and watching the red fountain from a safe distance...... -- Alex Hermes: "We can't afford that! Especially not Zoidberg!" Zoidberg: "They took away my credit cards!" www.drzoidberg.co.uk www.sffh.co.uk www.ebayfaq.co.uk
Yep - think I know where you mean - down by the lodge hose - on the right? Or further towards Middle Barton - by the cottages that face you as you approach? Loverly road - and one I take pretty fast in the Elise - as well as the bikes - but one that can very quickly catch the unwary ( I know the driver is the *lucky* one having survived - but what a thing to carry with you for the rest of your life.
Two comments really 1. if trained first aiders aren't much cop then why is it a legal requirement to have them for offices / buildings with more than 50 people in them? 2. I noticed while sitting in the surgery waiting room this week that there was a poster saying that most heart attacks happen at home and that it was strongly recommended that people learn CPR to be able to take immediate action if someone did have a heart attack. The main point was increasing the victim's chance of survival until "proper" help arrived. Plenty of good sense spoken by others in the thread.
Iain said: On a Sunday too - sorry old bean. Fary 'nuff was only a cheap shot! Many happies. Was - for two or so years, but the change was handled so badly and announced so pitifully (i.e. not even in their own announce newsgroup until someone copied it from some thrid party webpage) that I got the hump and took my account and several others (about 60 others - people I'd set up on ADSL and who wanted to be supported still) to Zen.
I wouldn't put it past relative trying to sue non-skilled helpers though. I remember in Germany, squaddies used to be told to not stop at accidents for the same reason. Mind you, non-assistance at an accident was (and is) also a crime...
Not exactly true. If the person isn't breathing, you'll need to get the lid off. Even then, very carefully. It comes down to treatment following the four B's: Breathing Bleeding Breaks Burns
Ouch! - cutting that was... Erm, actually, we *do* care about usenet - but [1] and, er [2] [1] It's my day off - so I'm not going to get dragged into work stuff... and [2] It's my birthday - so I'd rather be out on my bike... ) You a customer then?
Plastic bag, sellotape, anything that will cover the wound to stop the lung collapsing. *ding* A little basic first aid knowledge can go a long way.
Err... there is actually - I was taught it on a course a few years back, but I'm buggered if I can remember the finer points. Ideally it involves two people, one to support the neck, and one to slowly remove the lid. If you're out in a rural area, and they've stopped breathing, they're almost certainly going to die before an ambulance arrives. Therefore you're better off removing the helmet and risking a spinal injury, than you are just standing there watching them die.
Having been there before (only I knew the lad who didn't make it) I fully sympathise with you. What made it hard for me, was not knowing to this day, what caused the accident. You just do what you can, and the fact the you tried is enough for me. Good on you. To my mind, it's something you never get over, you just learn to deal with it.
That's a biggie, and could save a shed-load of lives if there's someone there to do it - including a notable case from this newsgroup, in fact. If someone's heart's stopped, they probably have 4 minutes to live. On average, IIRC, it takes about 15 minutes for an ambulance to get to the scene of an accident. CPR is very unlikely to restart a heart, but in theory you could keep someone alive for hours with CPR done correctly.
I had a nurse attempt to sue me once - she claimed she'd suffered 'nervous shock' from witnessing an accident I was involved in.
yes there is, Racesafe training covers that aspect, to assist paramedics , or to clear the airways before the doctors or paramedics get there if the person stops breathing. If you have not been trained, this is the safest way.
So... who is up for helping to arrange a UKRM "First Aid at Scene of RTA" day? If it's just a few hours work, I don't see why it can't be held in an afternoon at a meeting, such as EoSM, before everyone gets pissed?
