First Aid - Bleedings & Applying a Tourniquet

Often bleedings look very serious and tend to cause panic both to the victim and to those trying to help. It is important to remain calm and comfort the victim. There are two kinds of bleedings:

External Bleeding

Bleedings can be caused by numerous incidents and can range from a small cut to severed arteries. Analyze the bleeding:

Dark red blood coming out in a steady slow flow indicates a severed vein.
Bright red blood coming out in spurts or a heavy steady flow indicates a severed artery. This is a serious kind of bleeding as a lot of blood can be lost rapidly.

Do the following:

Place clean cloth over the wound and firmly apply pressure. If the blood soaks through the cloth do not replace it but add more cloth to the cloth already placed. Apply pressure for 7-10 minutes.
If possible, elevate the wound and position it above the level of the heart.
Apply pressure to a pressure point on a major artery using your fingers, hand or heel of your foot. Pressure the artery between your fingers and the bone behind the artery.
If all above methods do not stop the bleeding and there is a chance that the victim dies of blood loss apply a tourniquet (see details below).
Get the victim to medical professional as soon as possible.

Applying a Tourniquet

Find a strip of cloth, belt or another piece of flat flexible material that is at least two inches wide and is long enough to be wrapped around the limb twice. This will be the tourniquet.
Place the tourniquet just above the wound between the wound and the rest of the body. Wrap it twice around the limb.
Tie a half knot with the tourniquet. Place a stick or other straight object on top of the knot and tie a full knot with the stick or object.
Twist the stick to tighten the tourniquet around the limb. Keep on turning until the bleeding ceases. Secure the stick in place.
Do not loosen or remove the tourniquet until the victim has reached professional medical help
Make sure to write down the exact time the tourniquet was applied so medical professionals will know how long it has been in place. Do not cover the tourniquet and tell the medical professionals of its placement. To make sure mark a T on the forehead of the victim.
Stay with the victim and assure yourself that the victim does not go into shock or cardiac arrest.

Note: The use of tourniquets is NOT recommended in the UK first aid training world.

Internal Bleeding

Internal bleeding is more difficult to recognize. Try to look for the following:

Vomiting or coughing up blood
Blood in the stools or urine
Blood from the ears, nose or mouth
Abdominal swelling and/or pain and tenderness in the abdomen
Pale skin
Excessive thirst
Possible restlessness, apprehension and mental confusion
Shock

Do the following:

Keep the victim lying down flat with the head elevated. If the victim needs to vomit turn the head sideways.
Keep the victim covered and warm
Check the victims vital signs and wait for the medical professionals to arrive

It is necessary to be able to assess the condition of a possible injury and what you can do if it happens when you go Snowboarding. These are some guides that could help you. In case of doubt consult the medical professionals and get help.

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