FIRST AID

[Music] first aid may be defined as the early assistance to the sick and injured the purpose of this picture is to show how first aid may be accomplished by simple method it is a mistake to think that one must know many things in order to be helpful to one recently injured however a few things must be understood if an officer or soldier is to do what is necessary to save life or relieve suffering in the field much harm may be done through ignorance or clumsiness unless a few elementary principles of first aid are thoroughly mastered war wounds reduce the effectiveness of combat units by the loss of men whose training and experience make them valuable to the Commandant the first aid applied during the first 10 minutes after a soldier is wounded may determine whether he will be permanently lost for the fighting force or return to duty giving proper first aid will stop hemorrhage prevent further infection ease suffering maintain morale and do many other things for the welfare of the wounded man as well as for the fighting unit as a whole wounds may be very slight there's mere scratches on the hand or severe as by crushing or the impact of a shell fragment involving considerable surface and deep tissue all wounds will bleed some so freely is to endanger the life of the soldier one kind of bleeding which occurs in minor cuts and bruises or scratches is called losing the bleeding from such wounds does not in itself endanger life from loss of blood but the wound causing the bleeding may become infected causing loss of life or limb as germs infect all battle wounds even the slightest of them must be considered dangerous if losing only is present the wounded soldier usually can control the bleeding himself one method is by the application of the first-aid dressing one of these dressings is carried by every officer and soldier in the field using the dressings from the first aid packet the soldier should remove the packet from its pouch and open it in the following manner grasp the packet firmly with one hand and the metal tab on the packet with the other hand loosen the metal strip attached to the tab by a strong steady pull continue pulling on the tab until the entire Strip has been removed from the package remove the cover from the packet and then the dressing from the base of the package now comes the most important part of the procedure the dressing within the paper wrapper is sterile that is free from disease germs and thus inner surface must not be touched by anything before it is applied to the wound remove the paper cover and grasp the dressing by its two flat surfaces with both hands keeping the edge of the dressing which is marked by a red paper towards your body open the dressing as you would a book and apply the inner surface of the dressing into the wound surface bind the dressing in place by means of the attached bandages the application of this dressing should be sufficient to control sliding and to prevent further infection of the wound the dressing should cover the wound entirely the bandage holding a dressing in place should be tight enough to prevent slipping but not so tight as to interfere with the circulation of blood it should cover the edge of the dressing this picture shows the typical spreading of blood which occurs when an artery is cut this form of bleeding causes a large proportion of deaths on the battlefields and prompt action is required and is controlled when arterial bleeding takes place from a wound on the arm such as here or here the bleeding must be checked at once by pressure of hand or tourniquet at a point between the wound and the body where the artery can be pressed against the bone similarly arterial bleeding from a wound on the leg to be checked with a tourniquet between the wound and the body the tourniquet should be used only in cases where the loss of blood may be so great as to endanger life if use care must be taken with the skin and tissues are not damaged by the application as the arterial blood flows with considerable pressure the tourniquet will have to be drawn tightly to control its flow the injured man can rarely do this but may be able to save some of his blood by making deep pressure with his fingers in the proper place while waiting for help this tracing shows the principal artery of the upper arm note carefully the point for compression so that you will know where to make pressure on your own arm or that of another person to stop the bleeding this tracing shows the principal artery of the v and this is the point where pressure should be made to stop arterial bleeding in the leg if the wound is near the elbow or below it beep pressure with the fingers over the main artery of the upper arm when properly applied will stop the spreading of blood from a wound below the point of pressure the artery must be pressed against the bone if someone is nearby the soldier should call for help the one coming to his assistance should get a piece of stick a small stone or some other smooth object of suitable size padded with a handkerchief and place it directly over the artery where the fingers have been it should be bound in place with a bandage from a first-aid packet or the soldiers belt to shut off the artery and stop the bleeding if the wound is in the middle or a lower part of the thigh or on the lower leg hand pressure is applied to the inner part of the upper thigh with enough strength to press the artery against the bone the thigh is very thick and muscular so the considerable pressure is necessary to stop bleeding the Spanish windlass is the simplest type of Tony for this purpose the soldiers handkerchief may be you to apply such a tourniquet the handkerchief is looped around the arm and not a Banat or strong stick is placed through the loop and twisted until the bleeding is entirely stopped it is important to remember that a tourniquet shuts off all blood supply in the limb beyond the point at which it has been applied if the tourniquet is left in place too long the limb will become swollen dark in color and very painful soon the tissues will begin to die if the blood is not allowed to flow to them thus when a patient cannot be carried to a medical officer quickly or if he is unconscious the tourniquet should be loosened long enough every 20 minutes to permit some blood to flow into the lower part of the limb again after a few minutes the tourniquet is again tightened for another 20 minutes bleeding from veins can be recognized by the rapid welling up of the blood and the absence of spurting this type of bleeding is familiar to anyone who has ever cut his finger it may be controlled by raising the arm or leg higher than the body for a short period of time or by making firm pressure with a flat of a hand on a dressings placed over the wound the pressure should be continued for about five minutes and gradually release if the bleeding is stopped a snug bandage should then be applied over the dressing and the patient should keep quiet for about 20 minutes if this treatment does not stop bleeding a tourniquet should then be applied no matter what the type of leading as soon as the flow of blood is controlled the wound should be covered with a protective dressing to prevent further infections bleeding from any part of the body except the limbs that cannot be controlled by ordinary pressure usually requires the personal attention of a medical officer or medical department soldier leading from minor wounds of the head and other parts of the body may be controlled by the application of very tight bandages but as in all cases of severe bleeding obtain the services of a medical department officer or soldier or carry the patient to an aid station or dispensary the saving of blood by these means will help the soldier to withstand a surgical operation later at one of the medical stations in the rear some wounds may be bleeding dangerously within the body the blood not showing on the surface this is known as concealed or hidden bleeding patients become very pale breathe rapidly and soon become unconscious all such patients should be gotten to an aid station without delay they should be handled very carefully as they are carried this diagram shows how the blood fills the abdominal cavity in case of an internal hemorrhage in all cases involving emergency treatment of bleeding wounds a few points must be emphasized never touch a wound directly with your fingers or with anything except the sterile bandages in the first day of package and above all remember to keep cool and used common sense the right thing correctly done will ease suffering and give a man a better chance of recovery and battlefield first-aid the next most important subject after bleeding is fractures or broken bones the question arises at once how will one know that a bone is broken there will be loss of power in the limb the soldier cannot get up on his leg or cannot use his arm the limb is unnatural in shape that is compared with the other limb the patient complains of great pain and tenderness at the point where the bone is broken and there is a story of an accident that could have caused the fracture broken bones have very sharp edges like this and if great care is not used when moving a man with a fracture the sharp edges may cut into the tissues and cause severe bleeding by gouging blood vessels or may injure nerves and cause paralysis be gentle when moving a patient with a broken bone so that no additional damage will be done there are two great classes of fractures this drawing shows the simple fracture a simple fracture is one in which no communication exists between the broken bones and the surface of the skin germs from the outside cannot reach the broken bone fragment a compound fracture is one in which a wound channel extends from the skin surface down to the ends of the broken bone this is a very dangerous type of fracture as germs may spread down the wound channel to the broken bones infect them and thus caused great delay in healing or result in the loss of a limb or even the soldier's life if the wounded man has not handled carefully a simple fracture may be changed into a compound fracture by movements that forces sharp ends of the bone up through the skin to prevent additional damage the limb should be fixed in position before moving a patient from the place where he was hurt fixing fractures is accomplished by means of splints if a medical officer or soldier is not nearby apply a temporary splint yourself if you consider it necessary to move the wounded man when a second man is available he should make extension by a strong steady pull on the limb during application of the splint a splint may be improvised by using a rifle a bayonet a Banat scabbard blankets or pieces of wood it may be necessary to straighten out a leg before applying a splint a fracture can best be handled by two men one of whom grasps the heel and instep of the injured leg firmly with both hands and makes a strong steady pull until the leg is straightened maintain this steady even pull whenever the leg is moved most fractures that occur on the battlefield have been caused by bullets or shell fragments and our compound fractures the cause of the danger of introducing infection into the deep tissues it is important that in compound fractures with protruding bones I hadn't be applied first to the bone and then to the surrounding tissues and skin before attempting to straighten the limb all wounds of compound fractures must be covered with first aid dressings before the lemma splendid all splints should be patted before they are applied to the limb the padding may be clothing straw long grass or other soft material that may be at hand the soldiers blanket offers a good padding material the padding is fastened to the splint by making use of shoe strings or any similar articles care must be exercised to equalize the pressure against the leg and to ensure that all parts of the leg are protected from the hard surfaces of the splint the Banat scabbard may be applied to the opposite side of the leg to serve as counter pressure and to keep the bandaging material from cutting into the skin the padded splint is laid alongside the leg and bound in place with a soldier's wrapped legging or strips of cloth if nothing else can be obtained being careful if the splint does not press hard against the wound a splint must be applied in such a way that it will be impossible for the leg to be bent at the point where the bone is broken in leg fractures the splint must extend beyond the joint above and the joint below the fracture so that neither of these joints can be bent the splint must be well padded especially it points where it comes into contact with bony prominences if this is not done the pressure of the splint will cause great pain within a short time if the wounded soldier has his full pack with him use the blanket as padding and splinting the legs lay the blanket out flat on the ground and fold it so the width will be about three feet lay the rifle or a flat stick across one end of the blanket and fold the blanket and 5-inch folds to the center next lay the Banat and scabbard or stick or board across the other end and make similar folds to within three inches of the other folded end the blanket as folded should then be slid under the broken leg with the fold which includes the rifle on the outside exerting a strong pull on the leg all the while draw the thick folds up on either side of the leg and bind the splint in place at each end and just above and below the break this will fix the limb making it safe to move the wounded man if the break is below the knee prepare the splint in the same manner that apply to include the foot and the knee joint as an added safeguard both legs may be bound together the good leg adding rigidity to the splendid leg when the upper arm is broken temporary support may be given by inserting the good arm in the sleeve of the blouse draping the blouse over the other shoulder and turning the skirt of the blouse up under the forearm so as to form a sling a sling may also be prepared by using a belt or the bandage from the first-aid dressing if the lower arm is broken splints long enough to reach from the elbow to the tips of the fingers are prepared by padding a banner than the scabbard separately the padded bandit is laid along the back of the forearm hilt at the elbow and the padded scabbard along the inner surface of the forearms these splints are then bound in place with a wrapped legging or other similar article the elbow is then gently bent to a right angle the forearm is slowly brought across the chest thumb up and is suspended in a sling which may be made by using the soldier's belt here as in all other cases of fracture gentleness is essential the combat soldier can spend little time aiding wounded during a firefight but there will be opportunities to give assistance that may mean the saving of life battle casualties are removed from the field by trained medical department soldiers who carry on litters those unable to walk and direct others who can walk to aide station during lulls in the battle combat units are called upon to furnish extra litter bearers to help clear the field many wounded remain for all casualties should be placed in the hands of medical officers at the earliest possible moment seriously wounded must be lifted onto litters carefully so as not to increase pain and to prevent further damage to their wounds when the litter squad reaches the patient the squad leader at once inspects the patient's dressing put on by a company aid man or a line soldier while the other members of the squad prepare the litter for the patient the squad leader posts three bearers at the injured side of the patient and takes a position opposite them at the patient's hips all kneel toward the patient and slide their hands and forearms under him to secure a firm hold at the command of the squad leader the patient is gently lifted to the knees of the three bearers the squad leader procures the litter and places it under the patient he assists the squad to lower the patient to the litter a little Barrett takes post at each of the litter handles grasping it firmly all lift at the command of the squad leader keeping the litter level when carrying a loaded litter the patient is carried feet first the bearers avoid keeping step as that would cause the littered sway I'm moving over rough ground they go slowly to prevent jolting the patient when a litter squad approaches a fence or other obstacle that cannot be torn down readily the squad lowers the literally one bearer going to the opposite side two barrows pick up the loaded litter by the two sidebars the third bearer studying the head end all bearers lift the litter forward until the head end rests on the fence the other bearers cross the obstacle and help lower the patient to the ground all resume their posts were carrying and move off as before a deep ditch is crossed the similar care so the litter will be kept level during the cross if a shallow stream must be crossed to bearers grasp the sidebars of the litter and the other bearers take hold of the handles of each end they move through the water slowly this is done to prevent the patient from falling if one of the bearers should slip when the litter root is up a steep hill that cannot be avoided the patient is carried headfirst the bearers in rear carried their end as high as possible to keep the litter level but when carrying downhill or on level ground the feet are carried first the litter is kept as level as possible at all times by raising the head or foot in exposure to hot sun rain or cold causes great suffering the wounded soldiers lying out on the field and every effort should be made to protect them from the elements if litter squads cannot recover them at once they should be moved short distances to shady places or to such other cover as is indicated and as may be readily available a soldier may pick up a wounded man in his arms and carry him a short distance to nearby cover if the casualty must be carried a greater distance and the wound is such it will not be damaged by the movement the patient may be carried across the shoulders lift the casualty the standing position and grasp the right wrist of the patient with the left hand drawing his right arm over your head and down to your left shoulder next shift your right shoulder down to the patient's crotch pass your right arm between his legs and grasp the patient's right wrist now raise to an upright position with a patient across your shoulders other ways of carrying wounded from the field are between two bearers on the side the patient's resting on a rifle seat with arms about the necks of his bearers or by the method commonly called straddle back an additional first-aid procedure that will help morale is giving water to those unable to help themselves one danger must be emphasized in this connection do not give water to a soldier who has been wounded in the lower part of the chest or in the belly all of these battlefield first-aid procedures will accomplish much to prevent unnecessary suffering they will save life and place wounded in the hands of the personnel of the medical department in such condition that further treatment will be rendered more effective