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a snake bite, putting ointment on burns, or using a tourniquet to stop bleeding are old, out dated procedures and have been replaced by new ones from the Red Cross association.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