First Aid
FIRST AID is basic care in the event of illness, accident, or injury that can be performed by anyone until professional medical treatment is given. It was a concept first put into practice by the Knights Hospitaller, who came up with the term “first aid” and founded the Order of St. John in the 11th century to train knights in the treatment of common battlefield injuries. In a life of adventure, accidents are bound to happen, and a daring girl needs to know about first aid—even if she never plans to be injured in battle.
The information below is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment. Taking a first aid class will provide even more in-depth instruction. But there are definitely actions you can take to help in the event of injury, and below are some tips and techniques to keep in mind.
REMEMBER YOUR ABCs
When accidents happen, sometimes the first casualty is plain old common sense. It’s easy to panic and forget about what’s important, but these mnemonics can help you remember what to do. Mnemonic devices are formulas, usually in the form of rhymes, phrases, or acronyms, to help you remember things. Some of the most familiar mnemonics in first aid are: the three Ps and the three Bs; the ABCs and CPR; and RICE.
The Three Ps
(Preserve life; Prevent further injury; Promote recovery)
Remembering the Three Ps helps you keep in mind what your goal is in responding to an accident or injury: making sure the person stays alive, ensuring that nothing is done to further injure the person, and taking action to help the person get better.
The Three Bs
(Breathing; Bleeding; Bones)
The Three Bs remind a first-aid responder of what is most important to check when a person is injured, and the order of importance in treating: Is the person breathing? Is the person bleeding? Are there any broken bones?
ABCs
The ABCs stand for Airway, Breathing, and Circulation, and remembering this helps remind you to check that an injured person has a clear airway passage (isn’t choking), is able to breathe, and has a pulse. Open the airway by lifting the person’s chin with your fingers, gently titling their head back. Listen for breathing sounds, look for a rise and fall of the chest, and feel for breathing movement. Check for a pulse by placing two fingers on the person’s neck between the voicebox and the muscle on the side of the neck. If a person is not breathing and does not have a pulse, call 911 and begin CPR.
CPR
CPR stands for cardiopulmonary resuscitation, a procedure performed on people whose heart or breathing has stopped. Once you have checked the ABCs, if a person is unresponsive, call 911. Begin CPR on an adult by pinching the person’s nose as you give two breaths into their mouth. Using two fingers, check the person’s pulse at the carotid artery (the neck, just under the jaw, between the voice box and the muscle on the side of the neck) for 5-10 seconds. If there is no pulse, make sure the person is on their back, then place your hands one on top of the other on the lower half of the chest. Press down to give 15 compressions, about one every second. Give two more breaths, pinching the nose and breathing directly into the person’s mouth. Continue 15 compressions with 2 breaths for 4 cycles. After one minute, recheck pulse and breathing. If the person has regained a pulse, discontinue compressions. If the person is still not breathing, continue giving a breath every 5 seconds until help arrives.
When performing CPR on an infant, use two fingers instead of your whole hand, and compress on the breastbone, just below the nipple line. For children, use two hands for chest compression. For infants and children, alternate five compressions and one slow breath, for a total of twelve cycles.
RICE
Use RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation) for acute injuries like a sprained ankle or injuries due to overuse, like muscle strain.
R: REST
Rest the injured area until pain and swelling go away (usually 1-3 days)
I: ICE
Within 15 minutes of an injury, apply ice by placing a damp towel over the injured area and putting a cold pack, bag of ice, or a bag of frozen vegetables on top of that. Leave the ice on for 10-30 minutes, then take it off for 30-45 minutes. Repeat this ice on/ice off alteration as often as possible for the next one to three days.
C: COMPRESSION
Use a bandage to apply gentle but firm pressure until the swelling goes down. Beginning a few inches below the injured area, wrap the bandage in an upward spiral; if using compression in addition to ice, wrap the bandage over the ice pack.
E: ELEVATION
Try to keep the injured area above heart level to drain excess fluid for at least one to three days.
FOR BURNS, CUTS AND SCRAPES
Burns are classified by degree. First-degree burns are a reddening of the skin, as in a mild sunburn. Second-degree burns are when the skin blisters. Third-degree burns are when the skin is charred. Treatment for first- and second-degree burns is to immerse in cold water for 15 minutes, then apply sterile dressing. For a third-degree burn, cover the burn with a sterile dressing and treat for shock (calm and reassure the injured person, help her maintain a comfortable body temperature with a blanket or remove her from wind or sun, or have her lay down and elevate her legs 8 to 10 inches). NEVER apply ice, butter, oil or any other substance to a burn.
For cuts and scrapes, rinse the area with cool water. Apply firm but gentle pressure, using gauze, to stop any bleeding. If blood soaks through, add more gauze, keeping the first layer in place. Continue to apply pressure.
FOR CHOKING
The universal choking symbol is made by putting your hands around your throat. If you are choking and cannot talk, make this symbol to alert the people around you. If someone who is choking can still talk or is coughing, encourage her to cough more to expel the object. If she cannot talk, or if the cough is weak or ineffective, perform the Heimlich maneuver.
Heimlich Maneuver
Stand slightly behind the choking person and place your arms around her waist, below her ribcage. Make a fist with one hand, placing your thumb just above her belly button, and grab that fist with your other hand. Give five strong upward-thrusting squeezes to try to lift the diaphragm, forcing air from the lungs and provoking a cough. The cough should move and expel whatever is blocking the airway. If it doesn’t, perform the maneuver again to dislodge the object. If choking persists, call 911.
EMERGENCIES
Any practiced explorer can tell you that in an emergency, what helps most is being prepared. Make a list of important phone numbers and put them on the wall next to your kitchen phone, or on a notepad stuck to the refrigerator. That way, in the event of an accident, you’ll easily find the numbers to call your family doctor, poison control, the fire department, or the police.
The most important emergency number to know, of course, is 911. Calling 911 is free from any phone, even a pay phone. It can be scary to call 911, especially if you’re not sure whether or not what you’re dealing with is a real emergency, but it’s the right thing to do when someone is dangerously hurt, not breathing, or unresponsive. A good rule to remember is: when in doubt, make the call.
What to do when you call 911
Try to speak as calmly as you can.
Give the address you are calling from.
State the nature of the emergency (fire, accident, injury, etc.).
Listen to the 911 operator and follow any instructions you are given.
Do not hang up until the 911 operator tells you it’s okay to hang up.
FIRST AID KIT
It’s always a good idea to keep a First Aid kit at home, and making one for your family can be a fun project. For the kit itself, you can use a tote bag, backpack, or other container that is clean, roomy, easy to carry, and easy to open. The American College of Emergency Physicians recommends including the following in your First Aid kit:
Band-aids of assorted sizes
Ace bandages
Bandage closures and safety pins
Gauze and adhesive
tape
Sharp scissors with rounded tips
Antiseptic wipes
Antibiotic ointment
Hydrogen peroxide
Instant-activating cold packs
Tweezers
Oral medicine syringe (for children)
Prescription medication
Medicines including aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, cough suppressants, antihistamine, decongestants
A page listing the contents of your kit for easy reference, your list of emergency phone numbers, and a list of family members’ allergies and medications.
First Aid on the go: You can make a mini-kit (with Band-Aids, antibiotic ointment, tweezers, and Ace bandages) to take with you on a hike, or when you babysit.
Important Women in First Aid
FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE
Born in 1820 to a well-off family, Florence Nightingale was not expected to work in the not-then respectable profession of nursing. She grew up studying Greek, Latin, French, German, Italian, history, grammar, philosophy, and—over parental objection—mathematics. But in 1837, Florence heard what she called the voice of God telling her that she had a mission in life. Four years later, she discovered that mission—nursing—and abandoned the life of a socialite and mother that was expected of her.
She trained in Germany and Paris, and by 1853 was the superintendent of London’s Institution for the Care of Sick Gentlewomen. After the Crimean War broke out and she heard about the awful conditions for wounded soldiers, she volunteered to go to the war front in Turkey and took 38 women with her as nurses. During her time in the English military hospitals in Turkey, she established new standards for sanitary conditions and supplies; six months after her arrival, the mortality rate had fallen from 60 percent to 2 percent. Her status as the only woman in the wards at night led to her being called “The Lady With the Lamp.”
She eventually became general superintendent of the Female Nursing Establishment of the Military Hospitals of the Army, helped establish the Royal Commission on the Health of the Army, and in 1860 founded the Nightingale School and Home for Nurses.
But in addition to being a nursing pioneer and health care reformer, Florence Nightingale was also a remarkable mathematician. Her innovations in statistical analysis led to her invention of the “polar-area diagram”—better known to us as the pie chart—and revolutionized the use of statistics to analyze disease and mortality.
In 1858 she was elected the first female member of the Royal Statistical Society and she later became an honorary member of the American Statistical Association. In 1907 she became the first woman to be awarded the Order of Merit. Although bedridden for years before her death, she continued her work in the field of hospital planning. She died in 1910.
CLARA BARTON
Clara Barton, who was born in 1821 and lived until 1912, was the first president of the American Red Cross. She grew up the youngest of five children and began teaching school at age 15; she later clerked in the U.S. Patent Office. After the Civil War broke out and she learned the wounded were suffering from a lack of medical care, she established a service of supplies for soldiers and worked in army camps and on the front lines, earning her the nickname “Angel of the Battlefield.” For three years she cared for casualties of war in Virginia and South Carolina, and in 1865 President Lincoln appointed her to organize a program to locate men missing in action. She traveled to Europe in 1870 at the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War and worked behind the German lines for the International Red Cross. After returning to the United States, she organized the American National Red Cross, which she headed until 1904.
Queens of the Ancient World IV
Boudica’s Rebellion against Rome
BOUDICA WAS A WARRIOR QUEEN, with a fierce way about her and brilliant red hair that flowed to her waist. As Queen of the Celtic tribe of the Iceni in the first century AD, Boudica organized a revolt against the Romans, hoping to regain and protect her people’s independence.
In the year 43 AD, Roman soldiers marched to the French edge of the European continent, crossed the British Channel, and began their invasion of Britain. The Emperor Claudius, whose reign had begun in 41 and would last until 54, dreamed of conquering the mysterious British island. Rome was at the height of its power. Its huge army helped expand the boundaries of Rome in all directions. Britain was a special challenge. It sat beyond a choppy channel of water and was
the farthest spot to the northwest that the Romans could imagine, with a cold, unfathomable, and terrifyingly large sea beyond.
Britain was the home of Celtic tribes and Druids, with their mystical traditions and religious groves of trees. In Rome, the lives of women and girls were as controlled as the tightly wound hair braids and coils that were the fashion of the day. There, men dominated public life, and women, especially those in wealthy and powerful families, lived more private lives. By contrast, Celtic women had many more rights. They could govern and make laws, marry more freely, own property, and, alongside men, they could work and take part in their community’s marketplace. Their hair, too, showed their freedom: the fashion was to grow it long and leave it down, ready to fly with the wind.
Boudica was of the Iceni tribe, which inhabited the eastern part of Britain, and she had married Prasutagus, the tribe’s King. As Roman legions invaded and took over the land of the Celts, Boudica watched, unbelievingly. The Romans declared much of Britain to be the Roman province of Britannia. They founded the cities of Londinium—now called London—and Camulodunum, which they made into their capital. There they built a massive Roman-style Temple to the Emperor Claudius and a towering statue of a woman representing Victory.
Facing troops with greater weapons, the Iceni and nearby Celtic tribes followed the path of many local tribes. They feared that active resistance would mean death for many and slavery for the rest, and so they submitted. When the Romans came to the Iceni kingdom, they decided that Prasutagus should continue to rule his people. The Iceni could remain semi-independent so long as they stayed loyal to Rome. The Romans often made arrangements like this, charging local rulers to keep the peace and to collect taxes for the Empire. Prasutagus’ small kingdom lasted this way for nearly twenty years, until he died in the year 60, leaving behind Boudica and their two daughters.
Most of what we know about Boudica’s life comes to us from the Roman historian Tacitus, who in 109 AD wrote the Annals, detailing Rome’s first century exploits. Tacitus reports that under Roman rule, Prasutagus and Boudica remained prosperous. After Prasutagus’ death, however, it was learned that he had been wheeling and dealing with the Romans, and this included borrowing a great deal of money from the Roman governor. Prasutagus’ will directed that half the kingdom be turned over to the Romans to pay his debt. The other half he gave to his two daughters, for them to rule as queens.
Prasutagus had hoped his deathbed directions would protect his family, but this didn’t happen. The Roman governor Suetonius had already decided that when Prasutagus died, he would disarm the Iceni people, confiscate their arrows and spears and darts, and annex their land fully into the Roman province of Britannia.
Roman soldiers soon arrived at Boudica’s palace to plunder Prasutagus’s wealth and claim his entire kingdom as their own. They captured Boudica and made a show of torturing her and her two daughters in front of the Iceni tribesmen and women. Their cousins, aunts, and uncles were made into slaves.
Later that year, the Roman governor Suetonius decided to conquer Wales, on Britain’s western shore. As the soldiers of his fearsome Legion marched westward, they left the cities of Camulodunum and Londinium largely undefended.
Boudica sensed her chance. She claimed the mantle of leadership and stirred her people to reclaim their freedom and liberty. She reminded them of the horror and cruelty of Roman rule, and rallied them to win back their lands.
Boudica outlined her plan. Suetonius was in Wales, routing Druids on the Isle of Mona. Leading the way in her horse-drawn chariot, with 100,000 British fighters
behind her, she would attack Camulodunum first. All around, miraculous omens pointed to Boudica’s success; ancient reports tell us that the city’s Victory statue fell from its tall base to the ground below with no cause, as if Rome were already yielding.
Boudica’s troops stormed the city’s gates. By day’s end the city was in flames. A small group of Roman soldiers and leaders locked themselves inside the Temple of Claudius, holding out for two days until Boudica burned the Temple to the ground.
After hearing of Boudica’s victory at Camulodunum, the Roman governor Suetonius left Wales and headed straight back to London to protect it from Boudica’s rampaging soldiers. Seeing Boudica’s willingness to burn cities to the ground, he decided, however, to abandon London to her fires. Boudica’s soldiers left 25,000 people dead in London before advancing to Verulamium, Britain’s third-largest city, where they killed everyone who had cooperated with the Romans, and then destroyed the city.
Boudica’s army began to falter. As Suetonius’ men approached, they burnt the crops in the fields, sending ripened corn and beans into smoke, and leaving nothing to feed Boudica’s troops and keep them strong. Boudica had successfully destroyed unarmed cities, but Suetonius and his professional legions were too strong for the relatively untrained British Celts, whose luck now turned. Boudica fought one final battle, the place of which is unknown. Her troops had to start from the bottom of a tall hill and face off against the Romans, who were strategically encamped at the top. Roman arrows and pikes rained down on the Celts. Boudica’s fighters were overpowered, and many were lost to battle.
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