A lot of medical emergencies take place at home. It is important to identify what type of medical emergency you have on hand and what to do when you encounter it.
At this point, you would want to do all that you can to save the life of a person, blood or not.
Dizziness and Fainting
If a person says that he or she feels ill, dizzy, or weak, get to a phone and dial 999. There are many probable causes for this but it’s best to leave it to the experts to diagnose. You cannot perform a job that only an open MRI scanner can do.
Your role is to keep the patient safe until the paramedics arrive. Check for alertness and ask if the victim is okay. Ask them things that will help you determine their level of orientation.
If they are unresponsive, check their pulse and breathing. If the patient is not breathing, perform CPR immediately and do your very best to make the patient feel comfortable.
Choking
Let’s say you’re enjoying a meal and then someone all of a sudden starts coughing, it could be because they’re choking.
Allow them to cough it off first as they might just need to dislodge the food. Whatever happens, do not hit them on the back as it can make the situation worse and cause the food to go back into their windpipe.
If the person is no longer making any noise and is already red-faced, they are no longer breathing. This situation already calls for the Heimlich Maneuver.
Chest Pains
As far as chest pains go, assume it’s a heart attack unless proven otherwise. You would rather err on the side of safety on this one than take it lightly. If someone near you grabs their chest and says it hurts, reach for a phone and dial 999.
Check their ABC — airway,breathing, and circulation.If they’re not breathing or don’t have any pulse, prepare to perform CPR until help arrives.
For you to be prepared for instances like this, it is highly recommended that you know how to deal with a heart emergency.
Seizure
Seizures are scary, we’ll have to admit. But you need to get past being scared so that you can be of help when it happens.
Seizures have different symptoms and may be brought about by different medical conditions such as a child with very high fever or an epileptic or perhaps someone who’s suffering a stroke. When this happens, call 999 and make sure the person having seizures don’t hurt themselves as you wait for the emergency crew to get there.
If they fall, stay away from them so they can’t hurt anyone. Don’t attempt to put something in their mouth as it may cause more harm than good. Also, remember to note how long the seizures last.
Bleeding
Bleeding can be caused by different things. It could be something less serious as a small cut or something that requires more attention such as nosebleeds.
Just like in any emergency case, call 999. Or if you can’t wait for them, proceed to the hospital.Apply basic first aid for bleeding and wait for medical specialists to attend to the patient.
Take note, though, that you must stay calm no matter what. Never panic. Call 999 as soon as you spot an emergency and take over.
Start performing CPR if the situation calls for it. If you do not know how to perform CPR, have a dispatcher guide you. Almost all 999 dispatchers are trained to give CPR instructions over the phone.
