FIRST AID

First aid is the help given to someone who is injured or sick before the victim gets further medical assistance. This help can be given by any person regardless of his/her knowledge in a medical profession.

Whenever an accident occurs, something must be done immediately to help and save life of the victim. You must always be ready to give a hand to a victim whenever an accident occurs close to you. To give aid effectively and successfully, one must have elementary knowledge on how to assist different victims. 

If you do not know how to help a certain victim, you can ask someone to assist instead. Do not engage yourself in assisting if you actually do not know where to start. You may find yourself worsening the situation of the victim unknowingly. However, this should not be taken as an excuse for failing to help. Always be ready to render some kind of help.

First aid helps to:

1. relieve pain and bring hope to the victim.
2. prevent permanent disability
3. prevent the victim's condition from getting worse
4. reduce the possibility of death.
5. shorten recovery time

Possible Causes of Accidents in a Chemistry Laboratory

Accidents may occur in a school laboratory if utmost care is not taken into account. Accidents in the laboratory are mainly cuts on parts of the body such as hands, fingers, legs or head. Others are burns from flames, scalds from boiling fluids, bruises and grazes due to accidental falling on a slippery floor.

Some possible causes of accidents in the laboratory include:

 Failure to follow the correct experimental procedures for example, pouring water into an acid instead of pouring an acid into water as the rule is.

 Neglecting some laboratories rules such as ignoring to wear protective gears, tasting the chemicals, eating or drinking while in the laboratory, etc.

 Failure to adhere to proper conduct in the laboratory like running unnecessarily and conducting experiments without your teacher's or technician's permission and guidance.

 Improper use or handling of laboratory equipment and apparatus when conducting experiments, which could lead to breakage and in turn cause cuts, bruises, grazes, etc.

 A slippery laboratory floor which can cause fractures, cuts, bruises, grazes, etc

 Accidental spillage of chemicals on body parts such as hands, face, eyes, etc, could lead to burns and damage.

 Poor ventilation in the laboratory may cause suffocation (due to inadequate oxygen supply) and poisoning (by inhaling poisonous gases produced when experimenting).

 Improper disposal of chemical wastes may result in explosions, burns or even fires.

 The leaking of gases from taps or cylinders may cause fires or even explosions.

 Use of wrong reagents due to incorrect labeling of chemicals or use of reagents or chemicals that have expired may cause burns, poisoning or damage to apparatus or equipment.

 Inadequate prior information or knowledge on procedures and hazards associated with certain practical activities or reactants may result in burns, poisoning or explosions.

 Loose or improperly plugged electrical appliances may cause electric shock, especially when touched with wet hands and during fixing of sockets.

In general, it can be concluded that most laboratory accidents are a result of negligence and carelessness of experimenters. It is also due to failure to follow the laboratory rules and general safety measures.

The Items Found in a First Aid Kit

A First Aid Kit is a box in which first aid chemicals, tools and instruments are kept. In the laboratory, the box is usually kept in a place where it can be easily reached in case of an accident, preferably on the wall.

Each student must be familiar with the tools and chemicals kept in the kit and learn how to use them to provide first aid to a victim.

How Each First Aid Kit Item is Used
The table below shows types of chemicals found in a First Aid Kit and their functions.

Burnt Ointment.	Applied on burns to prevent infection
Petroleum jelly	Soothing broken skin
Plaster or adhesive bandage	Covering small wounds or cuts
Sterile gauze	Covering wounds to protect them from dirt or germs
Eye wash solution	Flushing the eyes or as a general decontaminant
Thermometer	Recording body temperature
Antibiotic towelettes or cotton wool	Cleaning and drying cuts and wounds
Iodine tincture	Dressing fresh cuts and bruises
Pain relieving drugs such as aspirin, paracetamol, panadol, etc	Relieving mild pains
Liniment	Reducing muscle pain
	Treating mild bacterial infections on the skin, ear, nose and
Mild antibiotics	mouth
	Applied  on  minor  wounds  and  treatment  of  serious  heat
Gentian violet solution	wounds
Hydrogen peroxide solution	Cleaning wounds
Methylated spirit (70% alcohol)	Cleaning cuts and bruises
Bandages	Dressing wounds and cuts, and immobilizing injured limbs
Scissors or razor blade	Cutting dressing materials
Dental kit	Treatment of broken teeth, loss of crown or filling
Safety pins (small and big)	Splinter removal and securing triangular bandage slings

Tweezers	Splinter or stinger removal
Resealable oven bag	Container for contaminated articles
Moleskin	Applied to blisters or hot spots
Triangular bandage	Used as a sling, towel or tourniquet
Boiled, clean water	Washing hands and drinking
Nasal spray decongestant	Nasal congestion from colds or allergies
Torch	Source of light
Whistle	Blown to call for help