4 Steps to Take in an Emergency Situation for Caregivers

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Continuing our post from yesterday on 5 Basic Steps to Emergency Preparedness for Caregivers, here are 4 simple steps you’ll need to take when you find yourself in an emergency situation as a caregiver. Practicing these will help you know exactly what you need to do in an emergency.

4 Steps to Take in an Emergency Situation

Keeping your wits about you will be key, should an emergency arise. Practice these steps so that you’ll know exactly what to do in an emergency:

1. Assess the situation. Answer some questions to get a better understanding of the event, and so you can relay that to emergency rescue when they arrive. Is your loved one conscious and breathing? What were you both doing just prior to the emergency? Is he responsive? Was there a complaint of pain or anything else relevant? What is different or unusual about your loved one? Observer and compile as much as you can before calling 911.

2. Call 911. Do this when you have the even slightest hint that your loved one is facing a life-threatening emergency. Do not attempt to take anyone with a potentially serious problem to the hospital yourself. Rather, 911 should be called immediately. It’s crucial to accurately describe the situation and speak slowly and clearly when talking with the 911 operator.

3. Loosen any tight clothing. Make sure your loved one has nothing constricting the airways, like a restrictive shirt or tie, and keep them in a comfortable position while you wait for help.

4. Comfort and communicate. Talk to your loved one until 911 arrives, but don’t encourage the victim to talk. You want them to be as calm as possible until emergency rescue arrives. Take slow, deep breaths to help yourself stay calm as well.

You don’t have to be intimidated by the potential for an emergency. When one happens it may seem frightening, but the time you take to be prepared can make the difference between life and death.

Whether you are a stay-at-home mom, office executive, or a blue-collar worker, Think Safe has innovative emergency first aid tools and training that can be customized to fit your needs. Check us out online or call our experts today at 888-473-1777!

Make it a great day!

*Source: Linda Foster, MA at CarePages

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5 Steps to Emergency Preparedness for Caregivers

If you are a caregiver you understand the demanding, and sometimes intimidating, responsibility you have. It’s amplified when you know there’s a chance that the person you are caring for may one day face a medical emergency. There are things you can do to be prepared for those situations in advance, and know precisely what you will have to do and have on-hand.

5 Basics Steps to Emergency Preparedness

1. Take a CPR class. CPR can be used to revive someone whose heart has stopped beating or who has stopped breathing. A CPR class helps you understand the ABCs of emergency response: A (airway), B (breathing), and C (circulation). Check out Think Safe’s certified online training.

2. Learn the Heimlich maneuver. CPR training also involves learning the Heimlich maneuver — how to clear someone’s airway in the event a foreign object or food becomes lodged in the throat. Attempting the Heimlich maneuver without proper training can injure your loved one.

The multi-dimensional first aid kit. The First Voice: First Aid Cube.

3. Maintain a well-stocked first aid kit. Thoroughly read the manual as soon as you buy your first aid kit and check monthly to make certain you have adequate supplies (make sure to replace any items that may have expired). Keep a second first aid kit in your car; keep both out of the reach of children.

4. Create a medical provider list and keep copies handy. Have all doctors’ numbers in a convenient place. Put one copy of the list in your purse or wallet and one on the refrigerator. Included on your list should be all medications, other health facts and conditions. Another important part of the list is your ICE list, or In Case of Emergency list. These are family members or friends that need to be notified in an emergency, or would be able to watch children or pets if an emergency pulls you out of the home.

5. Buy an automatic blood pressure cuff. Available at any local drug store; learn how to use it and practice using it regularly. Take it with you to your doctor’s appointments to check its accuracy against the physician’s blood pressure monitor and to ensure you are using it correctly.

What steps are you taking to be prepared for the unexpected? Spending a tiny bit of time preparing can save the life of a loved one.

*Source: Linda Foster, MA at CarePages

AED Saves A Woman’s Life

This story comes out of WNOI in Flora, IL and is a perfect example of why having an AED on-hand is so important. A short story with a lifesaving message.

AED SAVES LOCAL WOMAN’S LIFE

If there was ever any doubt about the validity of a new state law that requires AED’s or Automated External Defibrillators, at area sporting events, all of that doubt should now be eliminated.

A local woman’s life was saved by one of the devices, while she was watching her grandson play baseball, Tuesday night, at the Flora ball fields.

According to the Flora Police Department, Phyllis Durre, who is the mother of Flora Police Officer Guye Durre, experienced a heart attack, while watching her grandson play in a junior high baseball game between Floyd Henson Junior High, of Flora, and Effingham Junior High. Two Clay County Hospital employees were also in attendance at the game, and they immediately sprang into action. They determined that she had no pulse, and was not breathing. So, they immediately started CPR and summoned for the Flora School’s AED, which was located in the nearby concession stand. The AED was applied to Mrs. Durre; it then called for a shock to her heart; and, it applied the shock. CPR was resumed, and her pulse rate and breathing was restored. She was then taken by ambulance to Clay County Hospital, in Flora, where she was stabilized. She was then life-flighted to Springfield for further treatment.

According to family member’s Mrs. Durre was listed in stable condition [the day of the event], and she is expected to make a complete recovery.

They further stated that doctors at both hospitals told the family that Mrs. Durre would not have survived the attack, if not for the AED.

Think Safe can serve all of your AED needs, including customized emergency response and program funding solutions. Feel free to call our AED Experts today at 888-473-1777 with any questions!