Despite our best effort and the care we take, emergencies might crop up when we least expect it or when we’re not prepared for it. Knowing how to give first aid and CPR are not exclusively for those suffering from a heart attack or a stroke, but also for those who’re bleeding, having difficulty breathing, suffering from the side effects of drugs and other medical emergencies. This is why it’s important that anyone and everyone should take CPR courses because the quicker that help is given, the better the chances are that the victim survives.
One of the most important reasons for studying CPR is that you’ll be able to identify the emergency and what needs to be done. While CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, teaches skills that will help someone involved in an accident, has trouble breathing or a person suffering a cardiac arrest, other procedures like how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED) or how to do a Heimlich maneuver is also touched on. And since there are different CPR procedures for adults, children and infants, training under an experienced and certified instructor will ensure that you know how to give correct first aid.
CPR and first aid are without a doubt a life saving skill and one that’s very critical since most heart attacks or medical episodes happen outside of the hospital. If the victim doesn’t receive immediate medical attention, then the chances of survival drop to 1% to 5% but a quick action from someone who knows first aid can drastically increase a person’s survival rate to 90%. That should be reason enough to encourage the study of CPR.
Knowing the right techniques, procedures and equipments to use during an emergency highlights the importance of studying first aid and CPR. Most of the time, an external defibrillator is not enough, CPR must still be given. A lot of actions are involved in CPR; you check how responsive the victim is and you listen and watch his or her breathing. There are also different ways of conducting CPR based on the person’s age; the number of compressions and rescue breaths given to an infant is different to one given to an adult.
First aid training also gives someone the facility to respond to situations where one is bleeding, chocking, suffering from a broken bone, having a seizure or has been poisoned. The goal of first aid training is to alleviate a person’s condition and to prevent death. And this is one reason why first aid training and CPR courses are invaluable; it shows how you don’t make things worse.
Probably the best reason why first aid training is important is that it lessens the reluctance of people to help. Whenever there’s a medical emergency, it’s up to the people near the victim to provide assistance until professional help arrives. However, most are reluctant to help because they don’t know what to do. This shouldn’t be the case as we have an obligation to our community to help as much as we can in the way that we can. Enrolling in first aid and CPR courses will give you the skill set and the confidence to help people anyway you can.