MODULE 4

INDIVIDUAL PROTECTIVE MEASURES

LESSON 1: Personal Hygiene

Assessment
1. Define Personal Hygiene. (15 pts)
Personal hygiene includes different habits i.e., washing hands and brushing
teeth which keep bacteria, viruses and fungal far away from our bodies.
Moreover, these habits will help us to protect our mental health and activity. Also
good personal hygiene will help us to keep feeling good about ourselves. Since
those who do not take care of their personal hygiene i.e., dirty clothes, body
odor and bad breath will suffer from discrimination, and this will mainly lead to
mental problems. But the most important point in this subject is that all people
have their own hygiene, but some people do it better than others, this mainly
depends on each person’s culture, society and family norm (Rasool, 2012).
2. Discuss the importance of personal hygiene in your own words
(15pts)
Good personal hygiene could be effective towards preventing infectious
diseases. Cleanliness in individuals in communities can reduce threats especially
by communicable diseases, thereby improving the overall health of a
community. Especially now in pandemic, personal hygiene is critical. For
example, some people may have only known how to properly wash and sanitize
their hands because the Coronavirus may be transmitted through direct contact.
Personal hygiene does not only pertain to physical appearance of a person, it
also serves well to its well-being.
3. Discuss the importance of sanitation and define sanitation in your
own words (30pts)
Sanitation is defined as the policies and practices of protecting health
through hygienic measures. Adequate sanitation, together with good hygiene
and safe water, are fundamental to good health and to social and economic
development. In India, although the cases of COVID-19 were skyrocketing, their
Prime Minister in 1923 once said that “sanitation is more important than
independence”. Improvements in one or more of these three components of
good health can substantially reduce the rates of morbidity and the severity of
various diseases and improve the quality of life of huge numbers of people,
particularly children, in developing countries. Lack of sanitation leads to disease,
thus the whole community must take extreme measures to maintain sanitation
to avoid the spread of disease.
4. Give possible diseases acquired with poor hygiene and sanitation
(20pts)
Poor sanitation is linked to transmission of diseases such as cholera,
diarrhoea, dysentery, hepatitis A, typhoid and polio and exacerbates stunting.
Aside from these diseases, poor sanitation also reduces human well-being,
social and economic development due to impacts such as anxiety, risk of sexual
assault, and lost educational opportunities. According to the World Health
Organization, inadequate sanitation is estimated to cause 432 000 diarrheal
deaths annually and is a major factor in several neglected tropical diseases,
including intestinal worms, schistosomiasis, and trachoma. Poor sanitation also
contributes to malnutrition.
5. Differentiate field sanitation and waste management field. Give two
(2) examples of each (30pts)
Field sanitation refers to the use of measures to create and maintain healthful
environmental conditions, these include safeguarding food, safeguarding
water, and controlling disease bearing insects and rodents. It is the practice of
safe hygiene in field conditions to maintain environmental health. It is used by
traveling militaries, field workers harvesting crops, campers, and other people
who spend time outdoors in environments which lack urban sanitation. Field
sanitation includes the inspection of water containers and trailers and also the
disinfection of the unit water supplies. The goal of field sanitation is to keep
everyone healthy while also making sure that the environment is not
compromised.
Waste management in the field refers to the following: (1) proper collection,
handling, and disposal of liquid and solid human waste; (2) collection and
disposal of trash; and (3) cleanliness of individual living and workspaces. Waste
management is the activities and actions required to manage waste from its
inception to its disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment and
disposal of waste, together with monitoring and regulation of the waste
management process.

LESSON 2: Basic Life Support

Assessment
1. Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
This technique was originally developed for victims of sudden cardiac or
respiratory arrest. CPR (short for cardiopulmonary resuscitation) is a first aid
technique that can be used if someone is not breathing properly or if their heart
has stopped. We have been taught that CPR is a skill that everyone can learn —
you don’t need to be a health professional to do it. The one who will perform
the CPR must try to stay calm. If a bystander like us knows how to perform CPR,
we might save the life of a family member or friend. CPR involves chest
compressions and mouth-to-mouth (rescue breaths) that help circulate blood
and oxygen in the body. This can help keep the brain and vital organs alive. We
should start CPR if a person is (1) unconscious, (2) not responding to us, and (3)
not breathing or is breathing abnormally.
The steps in carrying out chest compressions are as follows:
1. Place the patient on their back and kneel beside them.
2. Place the heel of your hand on the lower half of the breastbone, in the
centre of the person’s chest. Place your other hand on top of the first hand
and interlock your fingers.
3. Position yourself above the patient’s chest.
4. Using your body weight (not just your arms) and keeping your arms
straight, press straight down on their chest by one third of the chest depth.
5. Release the pressure. Pressing down and releasing is 1 compression.

2. Snake Bite
Snake bite is a significant problem worldwide. Despite frequent deployments
and exercises to countries where venomous snakes are endemic there are few
reported cases of our own army personnel being bitten. Snakebite is a persistent
threat that can be acute and life-threatening and may lead to significant
morbidity or long-term injuries among military troops who join in battles in the
most inhospitable environments, such as jungles and hills, or are involved with
other military duties. Approximately 2.7 million cases of snakebite have been
reported worldwide each year, of which 20,000 are casualties (Qiu, 2019).
The steps for a snakebite treatment are as follows:
1. Note the Snake's Appearance and be ready to describe the snake to
emergency staff.
2. Protect the Person. Thus, while waiting for medical help: the first-aider
must perform the following: (1) move the person beyond striking distance
of the snake; (2) have the person lie down with wound below the heart; (3)
keep the person calm and at rest, remaining as still as possible to keep
venom from spreading; (4) cover the wound with loose, sterile bandage;
(5) remove any jewelry from the area that was bitten; and (6) remove shoes
if the leg or foot was bitten.
3. Follow up. If you treat the bite at home, contact a healthcare provider. The
person may need a tetanus shot. Tetanus boosters should be given every
10 years. At the hospital, treatment will depend on the type of snake. If the
snake was venomous, the person will be given anti-venom treatment. A
tetanus shot may be given, depending on the date of the last injection.

3. Carry
Do not move an injured person unless they are in a life-threatening situation.
Moving an injured person can worsen the injury. If the person has a spinal injury
it can cause them to be permanently paralyzed. If the person is not in immediate,
life-threatening danger, call emergency responders for medical help. If you do
need to move the person out of life-threatening danger, it is important to do it
correctly to reduce the risk to the injured person and to yourself.
The types of drag and carry techniques are as follows:
• Crawling Technique - Use a triangular bandage, a torn shirt etc. to tie the
victim’s hands together and place them around your neck.
• One-Man Assist (Assist to walk or Lover’s carry)
• Pack-strap carry - This method is better for longer distances to lift a victim
safely. Place both the victims arms over your shoulder. Cross the victim’s
 arms, grasping the victims opposite wrist. Pull the arms close to your chest,
squat slightly and drive your hips into the victim while bending slightly at
the waist. Balance the load on your hips and support the victim on your
legs.
• Firefighters Carry - This technique is for carrying longer distance. It is very
difficult to get the person up to this position from the ground. The victim
is carried over one shoulder, the rescuer’s arm, on the side that the victim
is being carried, is wrapped across the victim’s legs and grasps the victim’s
opposite arm.
• Two-man Assist - For conscious victim, this carry allows the victim to swing
their legs using the rescuers as a pair of crutched. For the unconscious
victim, it is a quick and easy way to move a victim out of immediate danger.
• Two-Man Carry - Rescuer 1 squats at the victim’s head and grasps the
victim from behind at the midsection. Rescuer 2 squats between the
victim’s knees, grasping outside of the knees. Both rescuers rise to a
standing position.
• Chair Carry - This is a good method for carrying victims up and down stairs
or through narrow or uneven areas. Pick the victim up and place them or
have sit in a chair.
• Blanket Drag - This is the preferred method for dragging a victim from
confined area. - Place the victim on the blanket by using the “logroll” or
the three person lift.
• Three Person’s Carry - This technique is for lifting a patient into a bed or
stretcher, or for transporting to short distances.

4. Burns
Very deep burns are the most life-threatening of all and may require
amputation. Types of burns include: First-degree burns damage the outer layer
(epidermis) of the skin. These burns usually heal on their own within a week.
Military burns result from either combat or non-combat causes. Waste burning,
ammunition handling, and gasoline cause most non-combat injuries, while the
majority of combat injuries, which account for 63% of burn injuries among
military personnel, result from explosive device detonation. If enough skin area
is injured, the ability to maintain that control can be lost. The skin also acts as a
protective barrier against the bacteria and viruses that inhabit the world outside
the body.
 Burns are classified based upon their depth. A first-degree burn is
superficial and causes local inflammation of the skin. Sunburns often are
categorized as first-degree burns. The inflammation is characterized by pain,
redness, and a mild amount of swelling. The skin may be very tender to touch.
Second-degree burns are deeper and, in addition to the pain, redness and
inflammation, blistering of the skin also occurs.
Third-degree burns are deeper still, involving all layers of the skin, in effect
killing that area of skin. Because the nerves and blood vessels are damaged,
third-degree burns appear white and leathery and tend to be relatively painless.
The following are the steps for the first aid treatment of burns:
1. Remove the heat source from the patient, or the patient from the heat
source, whichever is easiest and safest.
2. Cool the injured area.

• Immediately cool the injured area for a minimum of 20 minutes using

cool running water from a tap or shower. In the absence of water use
any cool clean fluid such as beer or soft drink.
• A first aid burn gel may be applied, but this should be after cooling
with water (as above), provided water is available.
• If any clothing is wet with hot liquid or affected by a chemical splash,
remove it quickly and carefully.
• Remove any tight clothing, watches, rings or jewellery from the injured
area, if possible, because of the risk of swelling.

3. Position patient.

• If the patient is feeling faint lay them down.

• The injured part (depending on the location of the burn) can be placed
in a bowl or bucket of cold water if this is easier than pouring water over
the burn.

4. Apply a sterile dressing

• After cooling the injured area for up to 20 minutes, apply a sterile

dressing.
• Use a non-adherent dressing or a piece of clean plastic kitchen wrap.

Things to remember in treating burns:

• DO NOT break blisters or remove peeled skin.
• DO NOT try to remove any fabric that is stuck to a burn.
• DO NOT apply creams, ointments, lotions or butter to any burn injury
because infection may occur and complicate the injury.
• DO NOT place small children or babies in a cold bath or shower for a full
20 minutes, as this can cause hypothermia.
• Remember that any substance applied to a burn injury may have to be
removed later in hospital and may also delay the healing process.
• Avoid using adhesive tape on the skin around the burn because this may
cause further tissue damage.