to rescue with first aids

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Doctors in hospital emergency rooms often see accidental poisonings. A
frightened parent arrives with a child who swallowed a cleaning
liquid. Or perhaps the harmful substance is a medicine. Or it might be
a product meant to kill insects. These are common causes of accidental
poisoning.

In cases like this, seek medical help as soon as possible. Save the
container of whatever caused the poisoning. And look on the container
for information about anything that stops the effects of the poison.

Save anything expelled from the mouth of the victim. That way, doctors
can examine it.

VOICE TWO:

In the past, some people forced poisoning victims to empty the
stomach. They used a liquid -- syrup of ipecac -- to do this. But a
leading medical organization no longer advises parents to keep syrup
of ipecac. The American Academy of Pediatrics says some poisons can
cause additional damage when they come back up the throat.

VOICE ONE:

Millions of people know how to give abdominal thrusts to save a person
choking on something trapped in the throat.

The American Red Cross says a rescuer should first hit the person on
the back five times between the shoulder bones. These back blows may
ease the choking. If the airway is still blocked, the Red Cross
suggests pushing hard five times along the victim's abdomen. The
abdomen is the area between the chest and the hipbones.

You can do these abdominal thrusts by getting directly behind a
sitting or standing person. Put your arms around the victim's waist.
Close one hand to form a ball. Place it over the upper part of the
stomach, below the ribs. Place the other hand on top. Then push
forcefully inward and upward. Repeat the abdominal thrusts until the
object is expelled from the mouth.

VOICE TWO:

For someone in late pregnancy or who is very fat, place your hands
higher than with normal abdominal thrusts. Place the hands at the base
of the breastbone -- just above the place where the lowest ribs join.
Then begin pushing, as with other victims.

The American Heart Association suggests another method in this case.
The group advises chest thrusts instead of abdominal thrusts. For
chest thrusts, put your arms under the victim's arms and your hands on
the center of the victim's chest.

VOICE ONE:

Even if you are the person choking, you can still help yourself. Place
a closed hand over the middle of your abdomen just above your waist.
Take hold of that hand with your other hand. Find a hard surface like
a chair and rest your body on it. Then push your closed hand in and
up.

Red Cross experts say taking these steps can save many lives. But they
also say abdominal thrusts are not for people who have almost drowned.
They say using the method could delay other ways to re-start breathing
in the victim.

(MUSIC)

Hands-Only CPR
Hands-Only CPR
VOICE TWO:

CPR is cardiopulmonary resuscitation. It forces air into the lungs and
pumps blood and oxygen to the brain. Doctors say CPR greatly increases
the chances that a person whose heart stops will survive. It increases
the chances that he or she will suffer little or no brain damage.

The American Heart Association suggests two ways of helping. One
combines the use of hands to pump the victim's chest with rescue
breathing. The other method is called "Hands-Only CPR."

VOICE ONE:

"Hands-Only" is for people who are unwilling or unable to perform
rescue breathing. Some people fear infection. Others say they are
afraid of making the patient worse.

But an expert in emergency medicine says a person cannot be worse than
dead. Doctor Michael Sayre works at Ohio State University. He strongly
urges people in contact with a victim to take action.

VOICE TWO:

The American Heart Association tells how to take that action. It says
you can recognize a person needing CPR because the person has
collapsed. He or she is unconscious -- unable to communicate or react
to surroundings or speech. His or her skin has lost color. The person
is not breathing. If such conditions describe the situation, chances
are the heart has stopped beating.

You should act by calling for help, or sending someone else. Even if
you cannot do mouth-to-mouth rescue breathing, you can perform hands-
only CPR. You can do chest compressions that help to keep blood
flowing to the brain, heart and other organs.

To perform the compressions, place one hand over the other and press
firmly on the center of the victim's chest. Push down about five
centimeters. Aim for one hundred compressions each minute. Doctor
Sayre says you do not need a measuring stick or a timing device.


VOICE ONE:

If the heart does not start beating, continue with chest compressions
until help arrives. For a choking victim who is unconscious with no
heartbeat, clear the airway first. Then do chest compressions.

Doctor Sayre suggests that medical workers do both the breathing
method and chest compressions. He says some victims, including babies,
need the mouth-to-mouth breathing with the compressions. Still, the
doctor says it is better to do just chest compressions than to do
nothing. CPR is not difficult to learn. Many organizations teach it.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Most CPR training now includes how to use an automated external
defibrillator, or AED. Defibrillators use electric shocks to correct
abnormal heartbeats that can lead to sudden death. Such devices are
found increasingly in public places like airports, restaurants and
office buildings. A recorded voice on the AED guides the user. The
voice provides detailed information about what to do.

The defibrillator of today has developed from the first
defibrillators. Medical historians say the devices appeared late in
the nineteenth century.

An early example of Doctor Beck's defibrilator
An early example of Claude Beck's defibrillator
VOICE ONE:

In the nineteen twenties, American Claude Beck performed the first
surgical operations to repair damaged hearts. Doctor Beck worked at
what is now called Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
in Ohio.

Another doctor, Carl J. Wiggers, had kept laboratory animals with
heart stoppage alive by massaging their hearts. Then he followed this
rubbing with electrical defibrillation. This led Claude Beck in his
efforts to help return normal heart actions to human patients.

In nineteen forty-seven, Doctor Beck saved a patient with a
defibrillator device for the first time. The doctor's success led
others to further develop the method and device. Today small, movable
AEDs can identify heart rhythms and produce electricity to treat
victims of heart stoppage.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Bacteria can enter the body through even the smallest cut in the skin.
So medical experts advise people to treat all wounds. Clean the cut
with soap and water. Then cover the wound while it heals.

The Mayo Clinic health centers suggest several steps if bleeding is
severe. First, if possible, have the person lie down and raise the
legs. Remove dirt from the wound and press on it with a clean cloth or
piece of clothing. If you cannot find anything clean, use your hand.

Keep putting pressure on the wound until the bleeding stops or medical
help arrives. Do not remove the cloth if the blood comes through it.
Instead, put another cloth on top and continue pressure. If the
bleeding does not stop with direct pressure, put pressure on the
artery that carries blood to the wound.

VOICE ONE:

In the past, people were advised to stop severe bleeding with a
tourniquet. This device is made with a stick and a piece of cloth or a
belt. But experts now say tourniquets are dangerous because they can
crush blood passages and nerves.

If a wound seems infected, let the victim rest. Physical activity can
spread the infection. Treat the wound with a mixture of salt and water
until medical help arrives. Add nine and one-half milliliters of salt
to each liter of boiled water. Place a clean cloth in the mixture and
then put the cloth on the wound. But be sure not to burn the skin.