Dealing With Home Emergencies: 2 Basic Life-Saving Skills

Many of us consider our home to perhaps be the safest place imaginable. This is a very common sentiment among most people. It is perfectly understandable. Our home is the place where our families stay. It is also where we lay our heads to sleep and where our children play.

However, contrary to popular belief, emergency situations are just as likely to arise while we are at our homes as in any other place. This is because we live in a world that is unpredictable. Literally anything can happen at any given moment. This is the reason why it is of vital importance that all members of the household know how to correctly administer emergency procedures at a moment's notice.

Common Household Emergencies
The following are the most common emergency situations you can face in your home:
· Choking
· Suffocation
· Drowning
· Electrocution
· Concussion/Severe Head Trauma (due to falling or other accidents)
· Poisoning (as caused by ingestion of certain chemicals)
· Inhalation of smoke or other dangerous substances

Basic Emergency Skills
Basic techniques such as the Heimlich maneuver and CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) are among the most commonly used emergency medical procedures seeing as they are the most needed. The Heimlich Maneuver is commonly used for choking victims. It is done in order to remove foreign objects stuck in the victim's airway. The CPR, on the other hand, is used to facilitate breathing and the flow of blood to the victim's brain. It is used for victims who have suffered cardiac arrest and for those who have stopped breathing.

Both these procedures demand quick thinking and a hasty response on your part if they are to be done successfully. For instance, CPR needs to be administered almost immediately because a victim can die or suffer permanent damage to the brain due to a lack of oxygenated blood.

In order to perform the Heimlich, you need to get behind the victim and wrap your arms around them. Take one hand, make a fist with it and place it right below the choking victim's ribcage. Wrap your free hand around the fist and press it against the victim's upper abdominal area. Start doing some quick upper thrusts until the blockage has been safely removed from the victim's airway.

The CPR, on the other hand, is done by following a basic pattern of 30 chest compressions and 2 rescue breaths. Breathe normally when administering rescue breaths. Do not take deep breaths but make sure each lasts at least 1 second. You also need to make sure that you do chest compressions at a rate of 100 per minute.

First Aid Education
This article presents some of the basic tips on how to execute these procedures correctly in cases of home emergencies. However, it is important to point out here that this article should be read solely for purposes of information. It is in no way supposed to serve as a substitute to taking First Aid and CPR training.

These emergency skills are easy enough to learn and will prepare you for the unexpected. Taking courses are still the most effective way of learning these life-saving techniques. By attending these emergency classes, you will learn how to act during various types of emergency situations. With proper knowledge and training, hopefully every one of us will be able to feel that our family is safe in our own homes.

Make sure that you and your family stay safe. Learn the most basic emergency skills. Visit http://www.torontofirstaidcpr.ca for more information.
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