Legal Issues Surrounding First Aid

First aid is the initial care given to a sick or injured person before more formal medical assistance is applied. The goal of first aid is to intervene actively to prevent further damage, to provide life support, and to begin effective treatment of the victim's condition, to minimize injury and prevent death. Although first aid is not a substitute for medical care, those trained in first aid are able to assess the nature and the extent of an emergency and determine the best course of action to take until professional medical help arrives.

The need for training in first aid is evident, considering that injury is the fourth leading cause of death. Falls are the most common cause of injury, but motor vehicle accidents are the most lethal, accounting for 22 percent of injury deaths.

An important thing to know when dealing with a first aid situation is to be up to date as far as procedures are concerned. Procedures like slapping a choking person on the back, putting iodine on a wound, cutting an X on a snake bite, putting ointment on burns, or using a tourniquet to stop bleeding are old, out dated procedures and have been replaced by new ones from the Red Cross association. If you decide to administer first aid, be sure you are familiar with current procedures.

First aid begins with a scene survey. Before approaching a victim, a survey of the area is necessary to determine if conditions surrounding the incident may place the victim and the rescuer in danger. Next, the primary survey will determine if lifesaving procedures must be immediately performed to save the victim's life. The primary survey involves checking the ABC's: A: Is the airway opened and the victim's neck stabilized? B: Is the patient breathing? C: Is the victim's blood circulating? Is there a pulse? Or is there active bleeding?

Lifesaving procedures include cardiopulmonary resuscitation , which may be needed to provide basic life support when a victim has no pulse and is not breathing. The Heimlich maneuver aids choking victims by forcing ejection of obstructing material from the windpipe. The severity of spinal cord injuries has decreased 30-45 percent due to awareness that the neck must be stabilized before moving the accident victim. External bleeding is controlled by direct pressure and elevation of the bleeding site.

The secondary survey is a total body examination, ...

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...ng. The careful use of this skill and training will not only enhance the physical welfare of the persons you care for but will also enhance your own legal welfare.

On a closing note, here is a copy of Indiana's Good Samaritan Law as an example of almost every other states Good Samaritan Law.

"From and after the effective date of this act, no civil action can be brought against a person licensed to practice the healing arts in the state of Indiana, who has gratuitously rendered first aid or emergency care at the scene of an accident, casualty or disaster to a person injured therein, for the recovery of civil damages as a result of any act or omission by the said person rendering such first aid or emergency care in the rendering of such first aid or emergency care. This immunity does not apply to acts or omissions constituting gross negligence or willful or wanton misconduct."

As you can see, there is essentially nothing to lose if you administer first aid as long as you try your best to help and know what you are doing. Keep in mind that helping someone in a life and death matter is a very big commitment, so make sure you are willing to do so before you act.