Roads are dangerous places.
Walking, driving, biking, cycling or even using a mobility scooter, if you’re on a road, you need to know some road user first aid.
Helping when something goes wrong, can make a significant difference, often between life and death.
You don’t set out on a journey to have a road accident, so when they occur urgent action is required and there are some basic things you should be able to do.
Road user first aid
Most road accidents happen when an irresistible force meets an immovable object.
If you’re first on the scene your primary responsibility is to you, making sure you’re safe means you will be able to assist, and not become another casualty.
For the same reason when the oxygen masks on an aircraft fall you always put yours on first, before helping other people.
Assessing the scene
this is essential, know where you are, what’s happened, what services are needed, how many people are injured and how badly are they injured. Once you’ve made this assessment call 999 / 112.
Who are you going to help first?
Human nature suggests we react to the person shouting loudest, but in the event of an accident it’s the quite ones that are most at risk.
What to look for
We can bleed to death in a matter of minutes, so the first observation we need to make is if the casualty is bleeding and if the blood is pumping from an artery.
Are they responsive and conscious, are they breathing?
Do they have crush injuries or have something embedded?
Are they likely to have head and spinal injuries?
Now you know what to look for, you really should attend a course to find out how to help and gain confidence to act in an emergency.
Learn and have confidence to act in an emergency