What to Do in An Emergency Situation

An emergency situation is almost always unexpected, and it might occur when you least expect it. But you can cope with just about any sort of emergency or disaster if you follow this checklist:

Never Give in to Panic

This is the single most important thing to remember when responding to emergencies. Giving way to sheer mindless panic will not help you in the least, irrespective of the issue that you face. On the contrary, panic can make an already bad situation considerably worse.  That is because it will essentially drive away all rational thoughts from your mind and thereby rob you of your objectivity. In case you feel that you are being absolutely overwhelmed by panic,  you should stop and take a few deep breaths. They will calm you down.  

Remove Any Overly Tight Garments

If you feel that an article of clothing may be making an injured person uncomfortable, or restricting his or her airflow, you must loosen it so that they can breathe freely again.

Make Sure That You Are In a Position To Help

Sometimes, it is a smart idea to stay away from an emergency instead of rushing towards it. For example, if you see someone drowning, it is certainly a noble idea to jump right in and try and save him or her. But if you don’t know how to swim, you will be more of a hindrance than a help. This is the golden rule of responding to emergencies i.e. You should be able to perform a rescue operation instead of becoming an additional burden on emergency responders.

It might very difficult to stay on the sidelines when lives are on the line. However, rushing into a burning building without any equipment or training will just make it worse on the EMRs and other first responders.

Carefully Check for Internal Injuries and Bleeding Wounds

In case there is an accident and someone has been injured, you must apply direct pressure on the open wound. But you should only do this if the victim is bleeding a lot and you must use a clean cloth for this purpose. This is a good way to stop the blood flow and prevent further damage.  

Check for Bone Injuries such as Fractures and Other Internal Wounds

If the victim is not able to move a certain area of his or her body and seems to be in excruciating pain, it is likely that bone trauma is involved. You must not try and attempt to move the injured patient at all.  In this case, the best thing to do is to keep the victim stationary and wait for the EMTs to arrive. 

Conclusion In light of the above discussion, we can easily see that responding to emergencies is possible, even for a layman. But you must keep your head without becoming panic-stricken and you should also have basic first aid training as well.