First Aid And CPR

First Aid and CPR

In the medical field we have a variety of procedures that can be performed to help people and patients feel better or how to save a life. Some of the procedures that are performed can be done by professionally trained personnel, or by anyone. Two very important medical procedures that are very common are First Aid and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR). Both First Aid and CPR are used on a daily basis and are used worldwide, even if used in a slightly different manner the basic concept is still used almost everywhere.

First Aid

Some people may not know exactly what First Aid is, or if they do they might not quite understand the full meaning of it. First Aid is the care that is given to an injured or sick person prior to treatment by medically trained personnel (Nordqvist, 2009). Believe it or not First Aid is dated back to the 11th century in Europe. The order of St. John was created in Europe with an aim of training people to be able to medically care for victims of battlefield injuries (Nordqvist, 2009). During the same period there were other knights that were trained as well to help with the battlefield injuries. In the 19th century, 1859, Henry Dunant, had trained and organized local village folks to administer first aid to battlefield victims in Italy (Nordqvist, 2009). However, in 1863, four nations had met in Geneva, Switzerland and formed the Red Cross (Nordqvist, 2009). There are three main goals that First Aid has, and they are: To preserve life, to prevent further harm, and promote recovery. Preserving life is the main aim of first aid, meaning to save lives of the first aider, the victim and any bystanders. To prevent further harm means to keep the patient stable and to be sure that the patient’s...

... middle of paper ...

...e, the ratio changes for a baby needing CPR. The ration for a two-person rescue is 15 chest compressions followed by 2 breaths, with an air bag. Today, CPR is trained in nearly every medical facility or it is required to work in a medical profession.

Conclusion

CPR and First Aid have become procedures that are commonly used in all medical fields. It is always good to know how to perform both of the procedures in case of any emergency that may arise when it is not expected. Having to perform CPR could save someone’s life, not knowing how to perform it correctly could result in a person not being saved. Knowing first aid is also crucial because it’s something that can be used not only in a medical setting, but also at home on family members. Getting all the knowledge that one can get on either of these two procedures will only benefit that person for the future.