First Aid and Emergency Care

1. When deciding to administer first aid to anyone you must make a decision to act.
What are your legal duties for administering aid and what protects you if you do
decide to administer aid? This is a three-part question.
We as first aiders have a legal obligation to give aid or perform first aid care, we are
legally expected to provide the level and type of care that we were trained to perform.
The legal duties of a first aider are as follows. The first aider should not interfere with the
first aid being given by others. The first aider should follow directions of police officer
and do what a reasonable first aider would do under the circumstances. The first aider
should not force help on a victim who does not want to be treated unless the situation is
life threatening. Once the first aider has voluntarily started care, they should not leave the
scene or stop care until medical personal has relieved them. The first aider should follow
accepted and recognized first aid care procedures taught in the first aid texts. The first
aider should respect the victims privacy and maintain confidentiality and only give to
medical personal helping the victim. The first aider must document and preserve evidence
and should follow state laws of reporting criminal incidents. We are protected by the
good Samaritan law from being sued if we decide to give first aid care unless you are
found guilty of negligence-carelessness, inattention, or oversight that was accidental but
avoidable.
2. Before administering aid there are numerous things you need to do. List and
explain a minimum of three things you need to do before administering aid.
a. Ensure your own personal safety.
b. Take body substance isolation precautions to protect yourself from blood or bodily
fluids by putting on gloves, gown or mask if available.
c. Assess the safety of the scene of the victim and bystanders- always check the scene
for down downed power lines, spilled fuel or unstable vehicles
d. Determine whether the victim is injured or ill.
e. Determine how many people are involved.
f. Based on that information you can request EMS, fire department, police department
or any necessary resources that will be needed to help take care of the situation.
Some examples of injuries are caused by car accidents and falls from heights. Some
examples of illnesses are heart attacks or anaphylactic shock.
3. With any injuries there is a possibility of transferring disease from one person to
another. What are at least two ways you can protect yourself from disease
transmission.
a. Make sure you are up to date on all your immunizations.
b. Take body substance isolation precautions by wearing disposable gloves when in
direct contact with a victim.
c. Wash hands with soap and hot water immediately after providing care.
d. Dont touch mouth, nose or eyes until you have washed your hands.
e. Use a pocket mask if available when giving mouth to mouth.
f. Seek immediate care if you are exposed to blood or bodily fluids.

4. What is SAMPLE? Define each letter.

SAMPLE is an easy way to help you collect the victim`s history.
S- what are the signs and symptoms the victim is complaining of.
A- what is the victim`s allergic to.
M- what medications does the victim take, both prescription and over the counter.
P- what is the pertinent and past medical history of the victim.
L- when was the last time the victim had anything to eat or drink.
E- what were the events prior to the incident.
5. When assessing a victim of injury proper terminology must be used. Define the
following terms in your own words.
Anatomical position- Standing straight with arms by their side with palms facing
forward.
Supine position- victim is laying flat on their back, facing upward towards the sky.
Prone position- victim is laying on their stomach, facing downward toward the ground.
Superior- Higher in position, above a certain body part.
Inferior- Lower in position, below a certain body part.
Anterior- Toward the front of the body.
Posterior- Toward the back of the body.
Medial- Toward the middle or center of the body.
Lateral- To the right or left of the middle of the body.
Proximal- Closest attachment toward the center of the body.
Distal- further attachment away from the center of the body.
Superficial- Near the surface or top
Internal-Inside
External- Outside
6. Describe the function of each of the following body systems.
a. Muscular System- Muscles give us the ability to move. Three different types of
muscles in the body. Skeletal or voluntary muscle which are a conscious control.
Smooth or involuntary muscle which are muscles that can contract and relax with
little or no conscious thought. Cardiac muscle which are the heart muscle.
b. Respiratory System- Supplies a constant source of oxygen for the entire body. Takes
in oxygen and expels carbon dioxide.
c. Digestive System- It ingests and carries food, digests food, absorbs nutrients and
eliminates waste.
d. Endocrine System- Made up of glands that produce and secrete hormones, that affect
physical strength, mental ability, stature, maturity, reproduction and behaviors.
Endocrine glands secrete hormones directly into the blood stream.
e. Nervous System- The two main functions of the Nervous system are communication
and control. It enables the person to be awareness of environment, enables the person
to react to the environment, coordinates responses of the body stimuli and keeps body
systems working together.
f. The skin- Helps protects internal organs from injury, prevents dehydration, protects
against invasion by microorganisms, regulates body temperature, aids in elimination
of water and various salts and acts as the receptor organ for touch, pain, heat and cold.
The skin consists of two layers the outermost layer is the epidermis and the dermis is
the inner layer.

7. Victim assessment. You are the first person on the scene of a person on a bicycle
versus a car accident. There are multiple injuries to an unconscious person (the
bike rider) lying in the road. Completely describe the process from beginning to
end of how you would handle the situation.

8. There are three sources of bleeding. What are the sources and the effects of
each?
Artery- The most serious- the color is bright red the speed is usually rapid (spurting or
pulsating with each heart beat. The effect is under high pressure it is the most difficult to
control.
Vein- the second most serious- dark red color and has a steady flow. Usually pooling
blood. Difficult to control, The effect is that in large veins it may suck in the air.
Capillaries- The least serious- medium red and has a slow even ooze or steady drips. The
effect is that it often clots spontaneously usually causes very little blood loss.
9. Controlling bleeding is important. What are the three steps steps in controlling
an external bleed?
1. Stop the bleeding
2. Determine the cause and source of the bleeding and the general condition of the
victim; if needed expose the wound to determine where it is coming from.
3. Place the victim in a position in which they will be least affected by the bleed.
10. Define and describe how you would treat shock.
Shock is inadequate delivery of oxygen and nutrients to the cells.
1. Activate EMS system immediately.
2. Secure and maintain an airway.
3. Place the victim on their back unless the victim has an object impaled in the back
of the head.
4. Immediately control any major external bleeding.
5. Cover the patient to keep the warm, but not too warm.
6. Splint any factures which can help reduce shock by controlling bleeding and
relieving pain.
7. Keep the victim quiet and still.
8. Don`t give victim anything by mouth because of the possible need for surgery.
9. Monitor vital signs and mental status at 5 min. intervals until emergency personal
arrive.