The ABC's of First aid

Effective first aid requires proper and systematic assesment on victims. This is to insure that life threatening problems are given priorities as compared to non life threatening conditions. By doing a systematic approach, an immediate intervention can be given to life threatening problems prior to the arrival of the ambulance or emergency responders.

A good and systematic approach in making assessment is using the alphabet's A, B, C. It would be easy to remember this since everyone is very familiar with the first three letters of the alphabet.

In most cases of emergency or accident, people without proper training would often get rattled and will not know what things to do first. By following the A, B, C's of first aid, it would be easier and any person will easily remember even in the most pressured situations or difficult conditions.

A stands for Airway, B for Breathing and C for Circulation.

Obviously the common basic problem that we may encounter with the Airway is obstruction or choking. Airway obstruction should be cleared right away. A common obstruction among unconscious victims is the tongue. This can easily be resolve by tilting the head, a procedure commonly called, heat tilt chin lift. Though another method called the jaw thrust is done should a neck injury is suspected. Click here for an elaborate discussion on Opening the airway.

Breathing of course is very important, thus when a person has no breathing, mouth to mouth should be provided right away.

Circulation may involve two problems. One is the absense of pulse and the other one is bleeding. Should there be no pulse, CPR should be provided. For bleeding, the most important thing to do is stop the bleeding.