How to Save Accident Victim lives and Not Kill Them

15 days ago

Accidents are bound to happen because we as humans aren't perfect and neither are machines, so in our lives, we are bound to encounter one accident or the other which could happen at home, office, or any other place, but one place we are familiar with accidents is on the road.

Road accidents can be very fatal and sometimes it could be ghastly leaving people to not know the next step to take. This is because some people could be in shock with the sight they are currently facing, others could just be concerned about posting on social media (this is the one that irritates me a lot because human lives are on the line), while some people are just blank all together not knowing what to do at all. For this set of people, it will be nice to discuss what to do in case there is an accident and you happen to be around the scene.

image;flickr

The first thing to do is to call the medical emergency number that you know. This may vary from country to country, state to state, and province to province. Depending on where you are, you should have the emergency number on speed dial because they are the quickest way to get to the hospital for treatment.

There are a lot of people who in the process of trying to help have sent people to their graves for instance people wanting to carry accident victims only to lift them with their hands and legs. This is very wrong and it puts the head and neck in a position where the person could lose their life. The neck is left dangling and the person could find it difficult to breathe, and lose orientation which could lead to death. Before I explain how to move a victim, you must avoid moving accident victims unless it is necessary.

When carrying accident victims, you need to be at the same level with the victim when it comes to positioning, after which you must ensure that there are no movement in the shoulders and neck of the person. Ensuring their upper part is stable and not shaking is important so as to be able to drag them to a place that is safe and you can wait for an ambulance.

image; wikimedia

To drag them, you hold the person’s clothing at the top or the collar part and hold their head and neck firm to prevent movement. Aligning your hand to support the neck, head, and back helps prevent further injury. If you have an assistant, then ensure to move the person with clothing underneath them without twisting their neck and head. Move them in one unit to a safer place. With this, unnecessary injuries will be prevented when trying to save a life.

Now, a lot of you want to become a doctor by force and by fire but it is not a must. While you should learn how to perform CPR, if you do not know how to give it, then leave it alone. Do not let a life get lost because you attempt to save it the wrong way. Hitting a person at the back is not CPR, and pouring water on an unconscious accident victim is not CPR. I will leave a link on how to perform CPR below so you should read it and learn how to perform it. In all you do with victims of accidents, try not to inflict more injuries than what they currently suffer, and try to reach for an ambulance. These two things are very important.