I’m a paramedic – these are three things that everyone should know

A paramedic has revealed three things that everyone should know in an emergency situation that could help save a life. 

Posting to TikTok, the 999 worker under the handle @para_by_the_coast shared some key first aid tips that can make a vital difference. 

Read on for her top three first aid tips, along with advice from the NHS on each tip regarding what you should do in the tips listed below.  

How to stop a severe bleed

Beginning with how to stop a severe bleed, the paramedic says: ‘A severe bleed can cause someone to die within a matter of minutes so it’s vital that someone can act fast before the emergency services arrive’. 

NHS advice says that if someone is bleeding heavily, the main aim is to prevent further blood loss and minimise the effects of shock.

You should dial 999 and ask for an ambulance as soon as possible. 

The NHS adds that, If you have disposable gloves, use them to reduce the risk of any infection being passed on.

Check that there’s nothing embedded in the wound. If there is, take care not to press down on the object.

Instead, press firmly on either side of the object and build up padding around it before bandaging to avoid putting pressure on the object itself.

Do not try to remove it because it may be helping to slow down the bleeding.

If nothing is embedded, you should apply and maintain pressure to the wound with your gloved hand, using a clean pad or dressing if possible and continue to apply pressure until the bleeding stops.

Use a clean dressing or any clean, soft material to bandage the wound firmly.

If bleeding continues through the pad, apply pressure to the wound until the bleeding stops, and then apply another pad over the top and bandage it in place. 

NHS advice says you must not remove the original pad or dressing, but continue to check that the bleeding has stopped.

How to help someone who is choking 

Warning that ‘choking is one of the leading causes of death in children in the UK’, the paramedic said that ‘quick reactions and good quality first aid training can literally be the difference between life and death’. 

The NHS has different advice for what to do if someone is choking, depending upon the severity of the situation. 

If someone is experiencing mild symptoms of choking, you should encourage them to keep coughing to try to clear the blockage or ask them to try to spit out the object if it’s in their mouth. 

You must also make sure not to put your fingers in their mouth to help them as they may bite you accidentally. 

However, if someone is choking severely, meaning they are unable to speak, cry, cough or breathe, then you will need to administer back blows or abdominal thrusts. 

To give an adult who is choking a back blow, stand behind them and slightly to one side, supporting their chest with one hand. 

Lean them forward so the object blocking their airway will come out of their mouth, rather than moving further down. 

Then, give up to five sharp blows between their shoulder blades with the heel of your hand. The heel is between the palm of your hand and your wrist. 

If the blockage has not cleared, give up to five abdominal thrusts. 

These can be performed by standing behind the person who’s choking, placing your arms around their waist and bending them forward.

When they are bent forward, clench one fist and place it right above their belly button, putting the other hand on top of your fist and pull sharply inwards and upwards. 

If the person’s airway is still blocked after trying back blows and abdominal thrusts, get help immediately by calling 999 and telling the person is choking. 

How to perform CPR 

‘Effective CPR and the use of an automated external defibrilator (AED) will make it four times more likely that someone will survive a cardiac arrest,’ the paramedic advised in her video. 

CPR — known medically as cardiopulmonary resuscitation — should be performed when a person is unconscious and not breathing, or not breathing properly, even if their heart is still beating.

This is called respiratory arrest and will quickly become cardiac arrest without CPR.

If a person is unconscious but breathing normally, they should be put in the recovery position.

A full guide on how to perform CPR from the NHS can be seen below: 

Step 1

If an adult appears unconscious, gently shake their shoulders and loudly ask if they are okay.

Step 2

If the person is not breathing, or not breathing normally, ask someone to call 999 and ask someone to find a public access defibrillator (PAD).

Call 999 yourself if no one is around. Call handlers will give instructions on how to perform CPR.

Step 3

Start chest compressions.

Kneel next to the victim and place the heel of one hand on the centre of their chest. Place the other hand on top of the first and interlock your fingers.

Keep your arms straight and use the heel of the hand to push down firmly between the breastbone — around 5 to 6cm — and release.

Do this at a rate of 100 to 120 chest compressions per minute — around two per second.

Songs including Stayin’ Alive by the Bee Gees, Eye of the Tiger by Survivor and Wannabe by the Spice Girls all have 100 to 120 beats per minute, so medics recommend thinking of these songs while performing CPR.

Step 4

Keep performing chest compressions until 999 crews arrive on the scene and take over, or the person starts to regain consciousness — by coughing, opening their eyes, speaking or breathing normally.

If someone is nearby, it can be performed in turns.

Step 5

If a defibrillator is found, turn it on and follow its instructions.

The machine will detect whether a shock is needed. Some of the gadgets will shock without prompt, while others will advise if a shock needs to be pushed to deliver the shock.