VIDEO SCRIPT : 10 First Aid Mistakes Explained by a Professional

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ynlaWUwMsA
When someone's in danger, of course people rush to help. But even if
these good Samaritans mean well and are being very brave and selfless,
they can end up putting the victim in even more danger, if they don't
know how to properly administer first aid. That’s why it's crucial to avoid these 10 common and
very dangerous mistakes and learn what you should do instead.

No 10- tilting your head back during a nosebleed. Nosebleeds can be common, since there's so
many blood vessels in the nose that are highly sensitive to things like dry air and well, fingers.
There are some situations where nosebleeds are caused by an underlying health issue, in which
case you'd need to seek advice from a medical professional. No matter what the reason, we've all
been told to tilt our head back whenever we have a nosebleed. But it's high time to ditch this old
habit. Tilting your head back can make the blood travel from your nose to your throat, which
means you could find yourself choking on or swallowing blood. The best thing to do instead is to
apply steady pressure to the bridge of your nose for at least 20 minutes. You’ll have to breathe
through your mouth this whole time but you'll safely stop the bleeding.

No 9- forcing a fainted person to sit up. When someone faints, our immediate course of action is
to try to set them up, especially when shaking them doesn't seem to be helping. Instead of all
that, always start by checking their breathing and pulse. If that's all good, leave them on the
ground but raise their legs about 12 inches off the floor, loosen any restrictive clothing as well.
Once they regain consciousness, don't rush to help them back up, as this can just cause them to
faint again.

No 8- putting heat on a sprain or fracture. Ice should be used for acute situations, like suddenly
spraining your ankle, heat is for chronic conditions, like back pain. Heat on a sprain or fracture
only increases blood flow and leads to more swelling. The way to go for these types of injuries is
always to ice it, at first. The ice will help reduce any swelling, bruising and muscle spasms.
Never place an ice pack directly on your skin and be sure to leave it on for at least 20 minutes.

No 7- trying to remove debris from your body. If you step on some glass, for example, your gut
reaction will be to pull those shards out of your skin yourself. But if the tool you use isn't sterile
or if you underestimate how deep the wound is you risk getting an infection and doing further
damage. So make sure you're using a clean sterile tool or leave it in the hands of a professional.
When it comes to debris in your eye, it's best to close your eye, put a piece of gauze over it and
head to the hospital.

No 6- treating a burn too quickly. The first step to treating a burn is to run it under cool water.
But a common mistake is to just do it for a few seconds or a couple of minutes tops. If the water
is to actually help the skin, you need to hold the burn under it for at least 20 minutes. The heat
from the burn can go deep across several layers of skin. So even if your skin is cool on the
surface, the heat can still be trapped underneath, which is why you need to expose it to cool
water for such a long time.

No 5- going straight into the Heimlich maneuver for choking victims. The Red Cross has
updated their guidelines on how to give first aid -choking victims. So instead of going straight
for the Heimlich maneuver, here's what you're supposed to do instead. Stand behind the victim
lean them forward and give their back five quick blows with the heel of your hand. Only if that
doesn't work at first, can you follow it up with the Heimlich maneuver. Administer five quick
abdominal thrusts and keep doing it, until the airway is unobstructed.

No 4- putting something in a seizing person's mouth. In a panic-induced state. At seeing

someone having a seizure, a lot of people immediately try to block the person's mouth for fear of
the victim biting their own tongue. This is actually dangerous for the victim and for the person
trying to help. Another mistake is trying to restrain the person's movements. The thing to do
instead, is to turn the person over onto their side, which will help them breathe easier also clear
out the area of any dangerous objects, the victim could hurt themselves on. Most seizures only
last no more than five minutes, so you have to stay calm. If it goes past that, however, it's time to
call for help.

No 3- prioritizing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation for heart attack victims. When it comes to

cardiac conditions, like a heart attack, the first step is to always dial emergency medical services,
and then administer chest compressions or CPR. According to the American Heart Association,
CPR can double or even triple the chances of someone survival. Even if the victim isn't breathing
and there isn't a heartbeat, the body has enough oxygen that you can help it circulate thanks to
CPR. A common mistake is to think that mouth-to-mouth resuscitation is more important than
chest compressions, but that's not the case, according to the guidelines for CPR set by the
American Heart Association. So now, you know that if a person near you collapses from a
cardiac condition focus on chest compressions and don't go near their face.

No 2- not knowing what you're doing. Again good Samaritans mean well, when it comes to
helping someone in an emergency situation, but if you don't know how to, for instance,
administer CPR or the Heimlich maneuver correctly, you can end up doing more harm than
good. For example, someone might try to give CPR and forget that you have to tilt the victims
head back to keep the airway open. That can be a very dangerous blunder. That’s why the first
line of action in all serious first-aid situations is to call for help and let a professional guide you
through what you need to do.

No 1- using a tourniquet for a bleeding wound. Yes, tourniquets can stop a person from bleeding
but it's not a fix-all solution for any type of wound. If someone has a deep wound in their arm or
leg, applying a tourniquet can stop the blood flow to the entire limb, which can actually starve
the tissues of oxygen and possibly lead to amputation. Using a tourniquet should never be the
first choice. You know by now that, your first course of action should be to call for an
ambulance. While they're on their way, apply downward pressure with your hands onto a major
wound that's bleeding out, if you have sterile gauze, then use it so that you don't transfer bacteria
from your hands to the wound. This method can even stop bleeding from a large vein or artery.
Once the bleeding has stopped, wrap the wound securely with gauze. Only use a tourniquet if,
after all this, they're still uncontrolled bleeding. But by this time, the paramedic should be closed.
Have you ever had to administer first aid to someone, let us know in the comments below.