What are the basic first aid skills?

The basic first aid that we ordinary people need to master is essentially a practical operation centered on the three core goals of "first saving life, then preventing aggravation of injury, and finally reducing discomfort." There are not so many fancy professional operations, which can be used as soon as possible when encountering an emergency.

In the past two months, I met an aunt at the community market who got stuck in her airway after eating a green ball. She was speechless and her face turned purple. People around her were panicking and wanted to slap her on the back. I went up and used the Heimlich maneuver three times to cough up the green ball. Treating foreign body obstruction in the airway and performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation + AED operation in case of cardiac arrest are the highest priority life-saving skills. A few minutes of difference can mean the difference between life and death.

In addition to this kind of life-and-death skills, more often we encounter situations that are not fatal, but if handled incorrectly, there will be sequelae. This part of the prevention of deterioration is also the bulk of basic first aid. Last week, a high school student sprained his foot while playing basketball. His teammates rubbed it and sprayed it with safflower oil. When he was sent to the hospital, his entire ankle was swollen like a steamed bun, and the ligament strain was one degree worse than before. If he had stopped moving when he sprained his ankle, wrapped an ice pack in a towel for 20 minutes, and then used an elastic bandage to wrap it slightly tightly to raise his foot, he would not have suffered this problem at all. There are also burns, abrasions, and cat and dog scratches that everyone often encounters. Many people are still applying toothpaste, spreading incense ash, and squeezing the wound. Last time, the neighbor's child burned the back of his hand with boiling water. The old man insisted on applying soy sauce. I stopped him and gave him running cold water for 15 minutes. Later, the doctor who went to the hospital said that he washed it in time, and the wound that might have left scars recovered very well in the end.

Speaking of this, I have to mention the often-debated pinching of people to wake them up. This operation was indeed included in the old version of the first aid manual, but in recent years, international and domestic first aid guides have deleted it. This is not to say that it is completely useless, but it is the location where most ordinary people pinch. If the force is not correct, it may block the patient's airway, or even pinch the skin and cause infection. Rather than pinching the person, it is more important to tap the shoulder and call the person to determine the person's consciousness. If the person does not respond and is not breathing, the first thing to do is to call 120+ and perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Some people think that first aid is all about dealing with big problems. In fact, it is not. For example, how to give sugar to a conscious hypoglycemic patient, when you encounter a nosebleed, you should lower your head and press your nose instead of raising your head, and don’t put things in your mouth or press your limbs when you encounter an epileptic seizure. These seemingly inconspicuous little knowledge are all part of basic first aid and can save you a lot of detours.

I have been doing community first aid science popularization for almost four years. I have seen too many people think that "first aid is a matter for doctors."