THE IMPORTANCE OF RED CROSS FIRST AID AND CPR
We are deeply grateful to the American Red Cross for preparing information
on what to do in case of First Aid Emergency. With many of our lodges located on
second or third floors, usually with no elevator ser- vice, we really need to be
aware of what to do should an emergency anises. Not only should we have First
Aid assistance available in the lodge rooms, but many Masons are interested in
another aspect of our Masonic outreach "community service." We hope this Short
Talk will help point out the seriousness of the problem when First Aid
assistance is required--it's needed now! --Editor
You're seated at a banquet, dinner is winding down and the evening's speaker
advances to the podium. But he doesn't make it. Reaching for the microphone, he
clutches his chest and collapses to the floor. He is having a heart attack.
Would you know what to do? Would anyone in the room know what to do?
Since the turn of the century, the American Red Cross has been committed to
teaching Red Cross first aid to the public. The organization has always believed
that a citizenry educated in first aid is better able to prevent the thousands
of needless deaths each year from heart attacks, strokes, choking and other
common health diseases and accidents. About 1,500 people die every day from
heart attacks alone. When Red Cross CPR is combined, within minutes, with quick
delivery of the right medical care, it has been shown that about 40 percent of
heart attack victims can be resuscitated.
Thus, there is no better way to learn how to prevent a needless death in your
home, your office, your lodge, or your civic group's banquet hall than by taking
a Red Cross first aid and CPR course. Virtually every community in the country
has access to Red Cross-certified courses which, when successfully completed,
allow one to help save the life of one's spouse, one's child, one's best friend
or a complete stranger.
The key to saving the life of your banquet speaker, in this instance, is
knowing how to evaluate the situation, provide appropriate Red Cross first aid
immediately and at the same time access a fully equipped emergency medical
services (EMS) team (i.e., an ambulance). Normally this means going yourself or
sending someone else to a phone, and dialing 911. The caller should be prepared
to tell the EMS dispatcher--
- The exact location of the emergency (address, nearby intersections or
landmarks, name of building, room number).
- The telephone number of the phone being
- The caller's name.
- What happened.
- The victim's condition.
- The help being given.
- Do not hang up. The dispatcher may have more questions.
In general, there are several steps that should be followed in any kind of
emergency from the time that one recognizes the problem to the time when help
arrives.
Before you intervene in an emergency make sure that you have taken steps to
survey the scene.
Step one: Find out if the scene is safe. You can't help someone else if you
become a victim yourself. This applies to such things as toxic accidents,
traffic accidents and some natural disasters such as a flood where there is fast
running water.
Step two: Find out what happened. If the victim is conscious, ask some
specific questions to find out what's wrong and how bad it is. Often the scene
itself will reveal the nature and extent of the problem. If the victim is
unconscious, look for a medical alert tag, which may tell you how to provide
medical care to the victim. This can be done while you check breathing and
pulse.
Step three: Find out if there is more than one victim. In an auto accident,
people may have been thrown from the car or walked away in a daze.
Step four: Find out if there are bystanders who can help. Shout for "HELP." A
bystander may be able to seek help while you are assessing the victim's
condition. If a bystander is a family member, he or she may be able to provide
more medical information and offer emotional support while waiting for the EMS
team to arrive.
Step five: Tell the victim and the bystanders that you are trained in Red
Cross first aid. This will help to reassure the victim and let others know that
a trained person is in charge. Before giving Red Cross first aid to a conscious
victim, it is important that you obtain his or her consent. Simply say, "Hi, my
name is (blank). I know Red Cross first aid and I can help you until an
ambulance arrives; is that OK?"
A Primary Survey of the Victim
When you come upon an accident victim, he or she may not be moving. To
determine whether a victim is responsive, gently tap on the shoulder and ask,
"Are you OK?" If assistance is needed, you may need to shout to get help while
you proceed with the primary survey by checking for an open airway, breathing
and circulation (the ABCs) .
Airway: Does the victim have an open airway (the passage that allows the
victim to breathe)? The most important action for successful resuscitation is to
immediately open an unconscious victim's airway using the head-tilt/ chin-lift
method. This lifts the tongue away from the back of the throat and opens the
airway.
Breathing: Check for breathlessness. Look for the chest to rise and fall,
listen for breathing and feel for air coming out of the victim's nose and mouth.
Circulation: Is the person's heart beating? (Does the person have a pulse?)
To check to see if the victim's heart is beating, feel for a pulse at the side
of the neck. This is called the carotid pulse. Is the person bleeding severely?
Feel and look over the victim's body to determine if bleeding is present. If
there is severe bleeding (arterial bleeding), it must be controlled immediately.
Complete the ABCs before beginning any urgent Red Cross first aid treatment, as
there may be more than one life-threatening problem occurring at the same time.
Life-threatening conditions must be given first aid before less serious
conditions. It is more important, for example, to give breathing to someone who
is not breathing than to splint a broken arm or bandage a minor cut. In an
emergency, remember to shout for help and find a way so that you or a bystander
can immediately phone for EMS assistance. The above outlines the foundation of
Red Cross first aid. However, anyone who is serious about learning first aid so
that he or she is prepared to save a life, must take a Red Cross first aid and
CPR course. Call your Red Cross chapter for information about when the course is
offered. A Red Cross instructor can come to your lodge to teach the course. And
remember, the life you save may be your wife's, your child's or your best
friend's. Emergencies only happen to other people-until it is too late. So call
your local Red Cross chapter now.
Courses Offered by Red Cross Chapters
Adult CPR Infant and Child CPR Community CPR CPR: Basic Life Support for the
Professional Rescuer Standard First Aid
EMERGENCY ACTION PRINCIPLES
- Survey the Scene Is It Safe?
- Do A Primary Survey Check for Unresponsiveness
- (ABCs) Airway Breathing Circulation
- Phone EMS
- Do a Secondary Survey
- Interview
- Vital Signs
- Head-to-Toe Exam
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