First aid in a motor vehicle accident can determine the safety of the victim's life. Therefore, it is important for all road users to know and learn, in case they are faced with a traffic accident at some point.
Motor vehicle accidents can happen anytime and happen to anyone. Emergency handling of victims at the scene is very important until medical assistance arrives.
Apart from being the initial treatment, first aid in motor vehicle accidents can also save the lives of victims.
First Aid Preparation for Accident
The important thing that you need to prepare in an effort to do first aid in an accident is a first aid kit. Make sure that the first aid kit contains the following items:
- Bandages and plasters in various shapes and sizes
- Disposable gloves
- Alcohol-free cleaning wipes
- Scissors
- Tweezers
- Thermometer
- Antiseptic cream
- Pain reliever
- Cough medicine
- Antihistamine tablets
- Wound cleansing fluid
- Clean water to clean the wound
- Clean plastic bag
If the medicine in the first aid kit has expired, don't forget to replace it with a new one.
The contents of a complete first aid kit do not allow you to immediately help accident victims. You also need to know what happened to the accident victim. Different injuries or injuries suffered by victims, different steps to help.
First Aid Steps for Victims of Motor Vehicle Accidents
Victims of motor vehicle accidents may experience bleeding, burns, fractures, shock, sprains, or fainting. The following are first aid steps for accident victims based on the injuries or injuries they suffered:
Bleeding
The thing that often happens during an accident is bleeding. If the victim is seen to be bleeding in any part of his body, especially if there is a lot of blood coming out, try to stop the bleeding immediately so that the victim does not bleed out.
The following are ways to stop bleeding that you can do:
- Use disposable gloves, if available, to minimize the risk of infection.
- Apply pressure to the area of the body that is bleeding with a cotton swab or bandage until the bleeding stops.
If an object is stuck to the injured skin, do not remove it or press it. Press the left and right sides of the skin where the object is stuck, then place gauze or a clean cloth around the wound as a barrier so that the object that is stuck doesn't move. After that, cover it with a bandage.
If there are severed body parts, such as fingers or toes, wrap the body parts in a plastic bag or plastic wrap without cleaning. Make sure that the severed body part is taken with the victim to the hospital.
Burns
If the victim experiences burns due to a motor vehicle accident, there are several things you can do as a first step in handling, namely:
- Immediately cool the wound with cold running water for 20 minutes until the pain goes away. Do not apply cream, ointment, or oil to the wound.
- Carefully remove the victim's clothing or jewelry, unless they stick to the skin.
- Cover the wound with plastic wrap or use clean, see-through plastic for hand burns.
If the victim has a sprain
Accident victims may experience sprains, for example in the ankle. Sprained body parts will usually feel pain and experience swelling.
The following are first aid steps that you can give to help a sprain victim:
- Compress the victim's sprained body part with ice water to reduce swelling. If using ice cubes, do not use the compress for too long because it can damage skin tissue.
- Cover the sprained area with an elastic bandage, but make sure it's not too tight.
- Elevate the injured body part above your heart to reduce swelling.
Fracture
Knowing whether the victim has a broken bone or not is not an easy matter. However, if the victim is in pain and can't move their limbs, you can treat the injury as a fracture.
Avoid moving parts of the victim's body that have broken bones. For spinal fractures, do not move the victim at all, except on a stretcher. The slightest movement of the head, neck, or back can cause spinal cord injury that can be fatal.
Also avoid giving any food or drink to the victim because it is possible that the victim will be given an anesthetic when he arrives at the hospital.
Shock
Shock can be life-threatening if not treated properly. Therefore, it is important to know the signs of someone who is in shock, such as weakness, cold hands and feet, rapid breathing, paleness, and decreased consciousness. If you find these symptoms, seek medical help immediately.
While waiting for the medical team to arrive at the location, you can take the following actions:
- If possible, lay the victim down and elevate the legs.
- Warm the victim's body with a jacket, blanket, or cloth.
- Avoid giving any food or drink to the victim.
Faint
If the victim appears to be unconscious or unconscious, here are the first aids you can do:
- Lay the victim on a flat surface.
- Raise the victim's legs so that they are higher than the heart.
- Loosen the victim's clothing by unbuttoning the collar or belt.
- If the victim is conscious, do not make him sit or stand up too quickly to avoid fainting again.
- If the victim is unconscious for more than a minute, call the medical team immediately.
You can also check the respiratory system is still working or not. If you don't feel any exhalation or chest movement, give artificial respiration or CPR.cardiopulmonary resuscitation) if you know how.
It is important to provide first aid in an accident. However, don't forget to call emergency medical assistance at number 112, so that accident victims can immediately get proper treatment from medical personnel, as well as from doctors at the hospital.