First aid skill retention of first responders within the workplace

AbstractIntroduction:Research on skill acquisition and retention in the prehospital setting has focused primarily on resuscitation and defibrillation. Investigation into other first aid skills is required in order to validate practices and support training regimes. No studies have investigated competency using an extrication cervical collar for cervical spine immobilization.Objective:This study was conducted to confirm that a group of first responders could acquire and maintain competency in the application of an extrication cervical collar over a 12-month period.Methods:Participants attended a standardized training session that addressed the theory of application of an extrication cervical collar followed by hands-on practice. The training was presented by the same instructor and covered the nine key elements necessary in order to be deemed competent in extraction cervical collar application. Following the practical session, the competency of the participants was assessed. Participants were requested not to practice the skill during the 12-month period. Following the 12-month period, their skills were re-assessed by the same assessor.Results:Of the 64 subjects who participated in the study, 100% were competent after the initial first assessment. Forty-one participants (64%) were available for the second assessment (12 months later); of these, 25 (61%) maintained competence.Conclusions:Although the sample size was small, this research demonstrates that first responders are able to acquire competence in applying an extrication cervical collar. However, skill retention in the absence of usage or re-training is poor. Larger studies should be conducted to validate these results. In addition, there is a need for research on the clinical practice and outcomes associated with spinal immobilization in the prehospital setting.

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Mental Health First Aid campaign to support first responders

Mental Health Weekly ◽

10.1002/mhw.31780 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 29 (7) ◽

pp. 6-6

Author(s):

Valerie A. Canady

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

First Responders ◽

First Aid ◽

Mental Health First Aid

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(A100) Building Local Resilience and Competencies in Remote Haitian Communities

Prehospital and Disaster Medicine ◽

10.1017/s1049023x11001026 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 26 (S1) ◽

pp. s27-s27

Author(s):

R. Gore ◽

C.M. Bloem ◽

B. Arquilla ◽

P. Roblin

Keyword(s):

Nursing Students ◽

Health Professionals ◽

Life Support ◽

Health Workers ◽

First Responders ◽

Training Model ◽

First Aid ◽

Medical Professionals ◽

Premature Deaths ◽

First Aid Training

Injury and trauma are major causes of premature deaths worldwide. At present, Haiti does not have an existing emergency medical system. Basic first responders training was developed for lay people and medical professionals in rural Haiti.MethodsThe training was conducted in Terrier Rouge, Haiti. Participants included medical professionals, laborers, health professionals, teachers, students, and truck drivers from six towns in northeastern Haiti. A three-day training course taught by U.S. board certified emergency medicine physicians was instituted. Basic life support (BLS), first aid, and BLS/first aid instructors courses were taught based on the American and Canadian Heart Associations curriculum. The BLS/first aid instructors course was limited to health professionals, whereas the first aid course was open to all members of the community. The program included the development of local teaching tools and manuals translated to local languages. Twelve newly trained local Haitian instructors assisted in the final day of training.ResultsThe course was well received by participants. A total of 54 people completed the BLS course, 67 completed the first aid course, and 12 participants completed the BLS/first aid instructors course. Ninty-five program participants completed the end of course survey. Forty-four of the participants were male, 49 were female, and 2 did not answer. Forty-one participants had no prior BLS/first aid training or exposure. The ages of participants ranged from 13 to 52 years. The course participants included two physicians, 22 students, eight nursing students, seven nurses, 20 teachers, 12 health workers, five drivers, and 14 laborers. Of those surveyed, 92 stated they would recommend this course to a friend. Eighty-eight participants stated that hands on learning helped them better learn the course material.ConclusionThis sustainable, locally controlled training model increased local skill level for basic first responders in rural Haiti.

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Impact of a Postcrash First Aid Educational Program on Knowledge, Perceived Skills Confidence, and Skills Utilization Among Traffic Police Officers: A Single-Arm Before-After Intervention Study

10.21203/rs.2.15240/v1 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Menti Lastone Ndile ◽

Gift G. Lukumay ◽

Karin Bolenius ◽

Anne H. Outwater ◽

Britt-Inger Saveman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Police Officers ◽

Educational Program ◽

Road Traffic ◽

Effective Means ◽

First Responders ◽

Knowledge Score ◽

First Aid ◽

Nonparametric Tests ◽

Basic Knowledge ◽

The Mean

Abstract Background An overwhelming proportion of road traffic deaths and injuries in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) occur in prehospital environments. Lay first responders such as police officers play an important role in providing initial assistance to victims of road traffic injuries either alone or in collaboration with others. The present study evaluated a postcrash first aid (PFA) educational program developed for police officers in Tanzania.Method A 16-hour PFA educational program was conducted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, for 135 police officers. Participants completed training surveys before, immediately and six months after the training (before, N = 135; immediately after, N = 135; after six months, N = 102). The primary outcome measures were PFA knowledge, perceived skills confidence, and skills utilization. Parametric and nonparametric tests were used to analyse changes in outcome.Results The mean PFA knowledge score increased from 44.73% before training ( SD = 20.70) to 72.92% six months after training ( SD = 18.12), p ˂ .001, N = 102. The mean PFA perceived skills confidence score (measured on a 1–5 Likert scale) increased from 1.96 before training ( SD = 0.74) to 3.78 six months after training ( SD = 0.70), p ˂ .001, N = 102. Following training, application of the recovery position skill ( n = 42, 46%) and application of the bleeding control skill ( n = 45, 49%) were reported by nearly half of the responding officers. Less than a quarter of officers reported applying head and neck immobilization skills ( n = 20, 22%) following training.Conclusion A PFA educational program may be an effective means of imparting basic knowledge and skills for prehospital trauma care to lay first responders in contexts where resources are limited. Furthermore, the likelihood of applying such skills can be enhanced by the availability of the necessary resources.

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‘Time is our utmost enemy’: First responders’ experiences of ‘While Waiting For the Ambulance’ assignments in rural environments – A phenomenological study

Nordic Journal of Nursing Research ◽

10.1177/20571585211009465 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 205715852110094

Author(s):

Helena Nord-Ljungquist ◽

Åsa Engström ◽

Bengt Fridlund ◽

Carina Elmqvist

Keyword(s):

Phenomenological Study ◽

First Responders ◽

First Aid ◽

Rural Environment ◽

Telephone Interviews ◽

Local Environments ◽

Rural Environments ◽

Interprofessional Training ◽

The World ◽

Need For Support

Firefighters around the world have the ability to provide first aid before ambulance staff arrive. In Sweden, this assignment is called ‘While Waiting For the Ambulance’ (WWFA). There is limited knowledge about WWFA in rural environments, therefore the aim of this study was to describe the WWFA assignment in a rural environment from the perspective of the firefighters and the ambulance staff. A descriptive design was used with a reflective lifeworld approach, including 16 telephone interviews with firefighters and ambulance staff. The COREQ checklist was applied. A directed responsibility emerges towards affected persons with a situation-adapted attitude during alarms in a WWFA assignment. The firefighters and ambulance staff are each other’s support with a simultaneous need for support from involved organisations. To strengthen this support, training is required, consisting of interprofessional training, feedback from relevant organisations about first aid efforts and expansion of WWFA assignments. Finally, there is a need for a more coordinated picture in order to provide better conditions for future action by the organisations involved, with increased opportunities to save lives in individual local environments.

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The Effects of Stress on Tourniquet Application and CPR Performance in Layperson and Professional Civilian Populations

Human Factors The Journal of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society ◽

10.1177/00187208211021255 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 001872082110212

Author(s):

Marc Friberg ◽

Carl-Oscar Jonson ◽

Victor Jaeger ◽

Erik Prytz

Keyword(s):

First Responders ◽

Physical Exertion ◽

First Aid ◽

Experimental Manipulation ◽

Task Engagement ◽

Bleeding Control ◽

Stress Reactions ◽

Application Performance ◽

Performance Effects ◽

Life Threatening

Objective The purpose of this study was to compare laypeople’s and professional first responders’ ability to perform tourniquet application and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) during calm and stressful circumstances. Background Life-threatening bleeding is a major cause of death that could be prevented by fast and appropriate first aid interventions. Therefore, laypeople are now being trained in bleeding control skills, transforming them from bystanders to immediate responders. However, critics have questioned whether laypeople are able to perform during more stressful conditions. Method Twenty-four laypersons and 31 professional first responders were tested in two conditions: a calm classroom scenario and a stressful scenario consisting of paintball fire and physical exertion. Stress and workload were assessed along with task performance. Results The experimental manipulation was successful in terms of eliciting stress reactions. Tourniquet application performance did not decline in the stressful condition, but some aspects of CPR performance did for both groups. First responders experienced higher task engagement and lower distress, worry and workload than the laypeople in both the calm and stressful conditions. Conclusion Stress did not affect first responders and laypeople differently in terms of performance effects. Stress should therefore not be considered a major obstacle for teaching bleeding control skills to laypeople. Application Tourniquet application can be taught to laypeople in a short amount of time, and they can perform this skill during stress in controlled settings. Concerns about laypeople’s ability to perform under stress should not exclude bleeding control skills from first aid courses for civilian laypeople.

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First Responders While Administering Unrealized Integrated Pre-Hospital

International Journal of Science and Society ◽

10.54783/ijsoc.v2i3.143 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2 (3) ◽

pp. 146-158

Author(s):

Fitri Anita ◽

Tita Hariyanti ◽

Tony Suharsono

Keyword(s):

Health Service ◽

Police Officers ◽

Public Transportation ◽

Traffic Accident ◽

First Responders ◽

Health Agency ◽

First Aid ◽

Hospital Service ◽

Study Approach ◽

The People

The mortality rate concerning post-traffic accident trauma is estimated to gets higher for the next years. When a traffic accident occurs, the provision of first aid is carried out by laypeople/communities around the scene with limited knowledge and equipment available. Especially, if a traffic accident occurs in an area that has not applied an integrated pre-hospital service. This research aims to explore the first responders’ care administration in a region that has not applied pre-hospitalized emergency service formally. This is a qualitative study with a case study approach. This approach is chosen to identify emerging themes. The research was conducted in Konawe municipality, from February until March 2020. It was done by interviewing 8 participants consisting of the citizens, traffic police officers, hospital party, and health agency in the research site that had been selected based on the applied inclusion criteria. Five themes were found in this research. First responders struggle to save the traffic accident victims after the incident. They helped accident victims with limited tools. They helped the accident victims by sending them off to a health service immediately. They attempt to help the victims by sending them off to health services by using public transportation. Support Police action when finding accident victims. It could be concluded that in the area that has not applied integrated-emergency pre-hospital service would directly influence service availability in the society. The people would struggle to substitute the roles of medical workers in administering the first aid outside of a hospital with various limitations. Education and training programs concerning administering first aid, given quarterly, could be an appropriate health service program to offer for broader people as the first responders.

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First Responders and Prehospital Care for Road Traffic Injuries in Malawi

Prehospital and Disaster Medicine ◽

10.1017/s1049023x16001175 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 32 (1) ◽

pp. 14-19 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Linda Chokotho ◽

Wakisa Mulwafu ◽

Isaac Singini ◽

Yasin Njalale ◽

Limbika Maliwichi-Senganimalunje ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Communication Systems ◽

Road Traffic ◽

Prehospital Care ◽

First Responders ◽

First Aid ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Key Informants ◽

Road Traffic Injuries ◽

First Response ◽

First Aid Training

AbstractIntroductionRoad traffic collisions are a common cause of injuries and injury-related deaths in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Basic prehospital care can be the difference between life and death for injured drivers, passengers, and pedestrians.ProblemThis study examined the challenges associated with current first response practices in Malawi.MethodsIn April 2014, focus groups were conducted in two areas of Malawi: Karonga (in the Northern Region) and Blantyre (in the Southern Region; both are along the M1 highway), and a qualitative synthesis approach was used to identify themes. All governmental and nongovernmental first response organizations identified by key informants were contacted, and a checklist was used to identify the services they offer.ResultsAccess to professional prehospital care in Malawi is almost nonexistent, aside from a few city fire departments and private ambulance services. Rapid transportation to a hospital is usually the primary goal of roadside care because of limited first aid knowledge and a lack of access to basic safety equipment. The key informants recommended: expanding community-based first aid training; emphasizing umunthu (shared humanity) to inspire bystander involvement in roadside care; empowering local leaders to coordinate on-site responses; improving emergency communication systems; equipping traffic police with road safety gear; and expanding access to ambulance services.ConclusionPrehospital care in Malawi would be improved by the creation of a formal network of community leaders, police, commercial drivers, and other lay volunteers who are trained in basic first aid and are equipped to respond to crash sites to provide roadside care to trauma patients and prepare them for safe transport to hospitals.ChokothoL, MulwafuW, SinginiI, NjalaleY, Maliwichi-SenganimalunjeL, JacobsenKH. First responders and prehospital care for road traffic injuries in Malawi. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2017;32(1):14–19.

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Salutogenesis and the Mental Health of First Responders

The Handbook of Salutogenesis ◽

10.1007/978-3-030-79515-3_50 ◽

2022 ◽

pp. 543-551

Author(s):

Avishai Antonovsky

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Psychological Distress ◽

Traumatic Events ◽

First Responders ◽

First Aid ◽

Repeated Exposure ◽

Preparation Programs ◽

Mental Preparation ◽

Potentially Traumatic Events ◽

Mental Fitness

AbstractIn this chapter, the author addresses salutogenesis and the mental health of first responders (FRs). Research has observed FRs to be prone to psychological distress and psychopathology resulting from their repeated exposure to potentially traumatic events. Most of the literature is focused on postevent treatment. The author discusses a mental fitness model that includes salutogenically oriented psychoeducation and other activities to enhance mental fitness among FRs and build their psychological strengths as they face adversities on their job.In closing, the author recommends that besides psychopathology-oriented programs intended for providing mental first aid to FRs and for the communities who experience potentially traumatic events, intervention also should include salutogenically based mental preparation programs. These should emphasize the strengths and resources that could help FRs arrive at scenes of disaster equipped with salutogenic resources, at the strategic as well as tactical levels.

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Immobilization and evacuation of accident victims by first responders in Delhi, India: a survey

International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health ◽

10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20211988 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (6) ◽

pp. 2874

Author(s):

Teena Elsa Joseph ◽

Rajesh Sharawat ◽

Vandana Phadke ◽

Smita Chakraboraty Acharya ◽

Gaurav Sachdev ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hospital Care ◽

First Responders ◽

First Aid ◽

Medical Emergency ◽

Emergency Medical Technicians ◽

Ambulance Personnel ◽

Emergency Medical ◽

Initial Care ◽

Police Personnel ◽

Better Than

Background: Despite many improvements, pre-hospital care is known to be inconsistent and inefficient across India. This contributes to high mortality and morbidity of accident and medical emergency victims. Pre-hospital care may be provided by bystanders, but they are known to hesitate due to multiple reasons. The first aiders (ambulance staff or police personnel) who are responsible for providing appropriate initial care are not adequately trained to manage all aspects of emergency situations including extrication, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, management of bleeding, and protection of the spine evacuation and transfer. The current study was conducted to gauge the knowledge of first aid among bystanders and first aiders in Delhi national capital region.Methods: Two separate surveys with closed-ended questions were formulated for the bystanders and first aiders in english and hindi. A sample of 511 bystanders and 309 first aiders (108 ambulance and 201 police personnel) completed the survey between February 2019 and April 2019. Data was analysed descriptively. Comparison were made across demographic variables for the bystanders. For first aiders, comparisons were made between ambulance staff and police personnel, and between emergency medical technicians and drivers.Results: The average total scores for the bystanders were 38.5±14.2%. Slight differences across age and educational qualifications were found. The average total score for the first aiders was 34.3±12.3%. Ambulance personnel scored significantly better than police personnel in evacuation (70.3±26.6% versus 42.6±26.5%) and CPR subdomains (37.6±19.4% versus 21.9±14.7%). The emergency medical technicians scored better than the driver in their total and first aid subdomain scores.Conclusions: The knowledge amongst first responders including bystanders and first aiders was low and efforts to educate and train them would improve the much-needed quality of pre-hospital care.

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