This world is full of situations or circumstances where a person can get seriously injured or fall sick suddenly. In this entire situation, it is important that the person get instant care and help. This first aid or help provided to a sick or injured person is known as first aid.
In our everyday lives, we face many situations that involve risks and dangers. For example, some jobs involve health and safety risks of individuals like an electrician, etc. This means that an emergency can happen anywhere and to anyone. However, the important thing in all emergency scenarios is the immediate response to the situation.
Research studies have shown that the recovery rate and chances of survival of a person who got first aid are higher as compared to the one who did not get any help on the spot.
What is First Aid?
As the name implies, first aid is the first help, care, or treatment given to the sick or injured person in case of an emergency situation.
We cannot deny the importance of basic first-aid knowledge and skills. People all around the world now understand this fact and there are many institutes where you can get enrolled to get your first aid training certificate or diploma. There are also many online training programs for people with busy schedules who are unable to attend physical classes.
The person after getting first aid knowledge can handle an emergency situation in a much more professional way. He is able to stabilize the victim’s condition until the arrival of an ambulance or professional medical help.
The major goal of this training is to provide immediate help to the sick or injured and help to control the situation from becoming worse.
Moreover, this training is important to learn because it enables the person to help not only others but himself and his loved ones as well. An emergency can happen anywhere and with anyone. If you will have the knowledge, you will not panic and will handle the situation in a professional way.
Advantages and Disadvantages of First Aid
We know that this basic life-saving skill is very important and useful. However, there are some drawbacks as well that cannot be overlooked. Let’s have a look at the list of advantages and disadvantages of first aid in detail.
Advantages
· Saves Lives
The first and foremost goal of first aid training is to help save lives. This can only be possible if the victim is provided with immediate help. There are many emergency situations that have life-threatening consequences. If immediate medical help or assistance is not provided to the such patient, then he can even lose his life.
In all these situations, first aid comes to the rescue. The person with proper training knows the basic skills and techniques to handle the victim and the situation.
For example, if we talk about a case of excessive bleeding, we know that the bleeding has to stop or be controlled immediately in order to prevent the situation from getting worse. The first aid provider knows the basic procedures to control the bleeding to keep the patient stable till the arrival of an ambulance.
· Speeds Up Recovery
Another positive aspect is that it helps to speed up the recovery process of the patient. In many cases when a person gets injured and the medical help arrives late, there are higher chances of the wound becoming infected. We all know that an infected wound takes much more time to recover. However, if we look at this situation the other way around if immediate care is provided to the wound, then it will heal quickly in the long run.
This means first aid helps in the speedy recovery and helps to control the situation from worsening.
· Prevents Deterioration of the Victim’s Condition
First aid helps to control and manage the situation by controlling and stabilizing the victim’s condition. Whenever a person suffers an emergency, he becomes panicky, nervous, and disturbed. In some cases, the victim even loses consciousness. In such cases, it becomes difficult for the victim to stay conscious and in this way, his conditions start to deteriorate.
However, if a first aid-trained person is present on the spot, he will take necessary actions to calm down the victim so that he will not panic and it will be easy to manage his condition in this way.
· Safety for You, Your Family, and Others
When a person becomes first aid trained, he is able to handle emergencies in a better way as compared to a layman. He then becomes very helpful not only to others but to his loved ones and the people around him as well. Such people become confident enough that they can be useful for society and helpful to others.
Disadvantages
· First Aid is not Helpful in Every Situation
The biggest drawback is that it cannot be implemented in every situation. There are many serious conditions of a victim that can only be handled by the top doctors and medical professionals. In this situation, the person with first aid training can be of no use even if he is present at the spot of emergency. Therefore, this is considered to be a major drawback of first aid training in that it cannot be proven to be helpful in every emergency situation.
· First Aid can Lead to Other Injuries
Another disadvantage of first aid training is that it can sometimes lead to other injuries. For example, in the case of a wound sometimes it becomes infected due to first aid not being provided correctly. This can lead to severe situations like worsening of the wound or severe infection, etc.
Final Words
We cannot deny the usefulness and benefits of first aid training and knowledge. However, the drawbacks are important to understand in order to avoid them in severe emergency situations.
