This advice is from the following article:
[Chennai Metro commuters left in the dark about emergency medical facilities at stations - Citizen Matters, Chennai](https://Chennai Metro commuters left in the dark about emergency medical facilities at stations)
“Irrespective of what is the next best available medical facility be it the availability of a clinic or an ambulance, the critical first few minutes influence the patient’s survival. It can be an emergency as simple as someone having a fall or a cardiac arrest. There is a scope for the layperson, who is around the patient when they face such an emergency, to do the right few things that will have a major impact on their survival. Even if it is not a life-threatening emergency, this immediate response will have an impact on how soon the person can come back to normal,” says Rajesh R Trivedi, the Co-Founder and Managing Trustee of Alert, a not-for-profit organization working to ensure the ‘Right to Life’ a reality in India by bettering the emergency response ecosystem.
“It starts from the ability to read the emergency scene where one knows if the medical emergency of the person suffering is life-threatening or not and how much time they have before the professional help arrives. With that knowledge, they can do a range of help from tying a bandage if someone is bleeding or putting a person in a simple recovery position depending on the case-to-case basis. Any layperson can do this and it does not require a paramedic or a doctor,” adds Rajesh.
Many people have the hesitation to come forward to help people primarily for two reasons. First is the lack of confidence that arises because of a lack of awareness of the first response. Second, is the inhibition that arises out of fear of dealing with the police or court at a later point in time if something goes wrong.
There is something called a Good Samaritan Law which protects the citizens who come forward with good intentions to help during such emergency situations. It clearly gives total protection from the police, the provisions to not disclose the identity, and free from any civil or criminal liability even if something goes wrong.
Awareness of these laws will help the common person to come forward with more confidence to help those in need of help during medical emergencies. However, it also requires proper awareness of the fundamentals of first responses.
Things to consider during a medical emergency:
Are you dealing with a victim who is conscious or unconscious? A simple way to ascertain this is by tapping the shoulders of the victim and shouting something loud. This will help to see if the person responds to stimuli of touch or sound. If there is a response from the person, then they are in a less life-threatening situation but you have to be around to keep them engaged.
If someone collapses, the first respondent should check if the person is breathing or not. A quick way to check whether the person is breathing or not is by placing a tissue paper (though unscientific, it is an easy way) near the nose or by placing two fingers near the nose.
If the person is breathing, then the immediate thing to do is to put them in a recovery position In a layperson’s terms, it is to put the person in a sideways sleeping position without a pillow. This is extremely helpful in dealing with patients who are breathing but are unconscious. Irrespective of the cause of unconsciousness, the recovery position helps to get the blood to the brain. many a time, when the person is put in a recovery position for five to seven minutes, they will come around immediately.
Another common mistake that we tend to make is to provide the unconscious person with water, soda or juice. If a person is unconscious and is not responding to basic stimuli, do not offer anything to drink (even water). That will only aggravate the situation. When a person is unconscious and is not in a position to swallow their own saliva, it means that the food pipe is closed and the windpipe is open. When we offer water, soda or any such liquid, the chances of it getting into the person’s lungs are higher. This is something we all should be completely aware of ‘what not to do’ when a person is unconscious.
Alert also provides a basic program online on first response during medical emergencies every Saturday which is free for anyone to join – saviour saturdays – Amenity Lifeline Emergency Response Team
They also have YouTube videos of some of the basic first responses that we should be aware of – https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0IvZh9fuI9ToFWFbDbz849-uCKQAzZ-K