Health Unit 2 - Checking a Victim & Bleeding and Wounds

The 3 life threatening conditions

Responsiveness, Breathing, Severe bleeding

Steps to checking for unresponsiveness

Tap the victim’s shouler and shout “are you okay?”

If they do not respond, cal 9-1-1/shout for help

Check for breathing

Look for flowing or spurting blood

Look for a medical identification tag

Steps to checking a responsive person

Ask the person “are you okay?“

If they respond, introduce yourself and ask for their name to use

Obtain their consent

Ask the person where they are now and for the current day/date

Quickly check for breathing difficulty

Scan the person for severe bleeding

If any life - threatening conditions are found or suspected, treat it

Shout for help

Look for or ask about a medical information tag

What is a recovery position?

It is used for an unresponsive person when you need to leave the victim for help, they are vomiting, or you are waiting for help to arrive

How to set up a recovery position

Place the victim on their right side using their left hand as a pillow for their face and their left knee forward as a stand

What is DOTS used for?

To complete a physical check of the body

What does DOTS stand for?

Deformities

Open wounds

Tenderness

Swelling

Cyanosis

Blueish skin color due to lack of oxygen

In what order of body parts should you use DOTS?

Head, neck, shoulders, chest, hips, legs & arms, then back

What is SAMPLE used for?

To ask questions to a responsive victim

What does SAMPLE stand for?

Signs & symptoms

Allergies

Medications

Past medical history

Last oral intake

Events leading to the situation

Know the flow chart

Hemorrhage

A large amount of bleeding in a short amount of time

Dressing

A sterile gauze pad or clean cloth covering places over an open wound to help absorb blood, prevent infection, and protect from further injury

Bandage

An elastic or cloth wrap used to cover a dressing to keep it in place and to apply pressure to help control the bleeding

Bleeding control steps

If available, put on latex free medical exam gloves

Cover the wound with a sterile dressing and apply direct pressure

Do not remove blood soaked dressings - apply a bandage over the wound to hold the dressing in place

If direct pressure fails to stop bleeding from an arm or leg, apply a tourniquet (use hemostatic dressing if tourniquet it impossible)

After the bleeding stops: care for the wound, properly dispose of gloves and blood contaminated clothing, wash your hands, seek medical care for a wound with a high risk of infection or if sutures or tetanus immunization is needed

Tourniquet

A band that is tied around an arm or leg when bleeding is uncontrollable due to a severe wound

Shallow wound care steps

Wash inside and around the wound with warm water

Flush with flowing water and pat dry

If bleeding restarts, apply direct pressure

Apply antibiotic ointment

Cover the wound with a sterile dressing and bandage

Severe wound care steps

Clean as best you can

Cover with a sterile dressing and bandage

Care for shock

Signs that a wound might be infected

Pus, swelling, redness, warm to the touch, throbbing pain

Steps to care for a victim with a small impaled object

Remove the object with a tweezer

Wash the area with soap and water

Apply antibiotic ointment

Apply an adhesive bandage

Steps to care for a victim with a large impaled object

Do not remove or move the object

Stabilize the object with bulky, clean dressings

If bleeding, apply direct pressure

If necessary, reduce the length or weight of the object by cutting or breaking it

Call 9-1-1 if it has not already been done

Steps to care for an amputation

Call 9-1-1

Control bleeding with direct pressure

Apply tourniquet if needed

Recover amputated body part, wrap in dry, sterile gauze, then seal

Keep part cool, place on top of ice, do not freeze

Transport the part to the hospital with the victim

Steps to care for an avulsion (flap of skin torn loose from the body)

Gently move the skin back to its normal position

Cover with a sterile dressing

Control bleeding

Internal bleeding

Bleeding on the inside of the body when a blood vessel is damaged, but the skin is closed, (a bruise)

Artery

Carries oxygen rich blood from the heart to the body tissues

Vein

Carries deoxygenated blood from the body tissues back to the heart and contains valves to prevent backwards blood flow

Capillary

The smallest blood vessels that connect arteries and veins and where oxygen exchange occurs

Heart diagram