What are the basic first aid skills?

The core of basic first aid skills that ordinary people need to master are the four categories of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (including the use of AED), Heimlich maneuver, hemostatic bandaging, and emergency treatment of burns and scalds. Together with the addition of sprains, heat stroke, and cat and dog bites, it can cover more than 90% of daily emergency first aid scenarios.

I have been in the community first aid volunteer team for almost three years, and I have seen too many examples of people being brought back from death just because they know a little basic first aid. Last month, an old man in the community suffered a heart attack while playing chess and fell down. Standing next to him was a junior high school student who participated in our summer training last year. , immediately knelt down to perform chest compressions, and the security guard ran to the guard box to get the equipped AED. By the time 120 arrived, the old man had resumed spontaneous breathing. If he had waited for the ambulance to arrive, the golden 4 minutes would have passed long ago, and the National People's Congress would probably not be able to save him. Many people always feel that they are not professional medical care, and they will be held responsible if they press the wrong button. In fact, the latest first aid guidelines have long made it clear that even if non-professionals only perform chest compressions and do not perform artificial respiration, it is much better than doing nothing. As for AEDs, there is no need to be afraid. There are voice prompts throughout the process. Just follow the instructions step by step. As long as you avoid implanted pacemakers and metal jewelry when attaching electrodes, there will be basically no problems. Oh, yes, some experts now point out that if non-professionals receive complete training, the success rate of chest compressions and artificial respiration will be higher. Everyone can do this according to their own abilities, and there is no need to force yourself to perform uncertain operations.

More common than cardiac arrest is the situation of foreign objects stuck in the throat. Last summer, I was walking in the community and met a grandma taking her grandson to eat grapes. The child was running and suddenly his face turned purple from holding himself back, and he could not speak. The grandma was so frightened that she only patted her back. After patting her for half a minute, she gasped even more. I quickly stepped forward and hugged the child's waist from behind. I placed my fist on the two horizontal fingers above the navel and pushed it upward and inward three times quickly. The grape seeds stuck in my throat spurted out. There are currently different practical views on how to deal with foreign objects stuck in the throat. Some people think that it is more efficient to pat the back 5 times first, and then do 5 times of Heimlich's cycle if no effect is found. Especially when operating on babies under 1 year old, you cannot press the belly directly. You have to turn the child over and lie on the forearm to pat the back. You can follow the rules you have learned. The core is not to give water to people who can no longer speak or to scratch the throat, which will only push the foreign object deeper.

After talking about emergencies that are directly life-threatening, let’s talk about the treatment of trauma that is most likely to be encountered in daily life. Last week, a young man fell while riding a shared bicycle to avoid a delivery truck. He suffered a three-centimeter-long gash on his arm. The blood stained half of his T-shirt red. A passerby next to him took a pack of tissue and covered his wound. He even sprinkled the Yunnan Baiyao powder he brought with him, which was actually unnecessary. Small wounds can be pressed directly with clean gauze or sterile dressings. Pressing for 5 to 10 minutes can basically stop it. If the blood pressure of the limbs cannot be controlled, tie a wide tourniquet to the side of the wound close to the heart. Be sure to remember the binding time and loosen it for 2 minutes every hour, otherwise the limbs will become necrotic due to prolonged ischemia. There are also many people who think that the wound will heal faster if it is left open and ventilated. In fact, after disinfecting the superficial wound, putting a band-aid or covering it with a sterile dressing will help the wound recover faster.

There are even more misunderstandings about burns and scalds. I have seen patients who apply toothpaste, soy sauce, and badger oil. Last week, a little girl had her feet spilled while cooking instant noodles. Her mother immediately applied half a tube of mint toothpaste to the wound. When she came to the clinic, the toothpaste was smeared on the wound. When the doctor cleaned it, the blisters burst, and she suffered even more. The correct treatment logic is very simple. First, rinse with running cold water for 15 to 20 minutes. The water flow should not be too strong to avoid breaking the skin. If there is clothes stuck to the wound, do not tear it off. Use scissors to cut off the surrounding fabric. Small blisters can be absorbed by themselves. For large blisters, it is best to go to the hospital and let the doctor use a sterile needle to pick them. It is easy to get infected if you prick it by yourself.

The rest are more trivial situations, such as spraining your foot and applying cold compress for 48 hours and then hot compress. If you don’t come up, just rub it and apply plaster.； If you have heat stroke, move to a cool place quickly and give some light salt water instead of ice water. ； If you are scratched or bitten by a cat or dog, even if the skin is only broken and no bleeding occurs, you should get a rabies vaccine as soon as possible. Don't leave anything to chance. In fact, these skills are not difficult. You can learn them by spending two or three hours participating in free first aid training in the community. They are more useful than anything else when you encounter an accident.