Safety, First Aid and Risk Management During Tours
Duty of care
Safety is a planning activity, not a reaction. Before the tour, assess the route for traffic, cobblestones, stairs, heat, cold, altitude, caves and water, and note the nearest medical facility. Carry a charged phone with the emergency numbers: 112 universal, 155 ambulance, 150 fire, 158 police, and Horská služba for mountain rescue. Check that the operator's insurance covers the group and that your own liability cover is current.
Legal anchor: failure to render first aid is an offence under the Criminal Code (Act No. 40/2009 Coll., section 150), and a lay rescuer acting reasonably and in good faith is protected. Consent is implied for an unconscious casualty.
First response
Run the sequence: scene safety → response → airway → breathing → circulation → call → CPR/AED. Only move a casualty if there is immediate danger. For suspected stroke use FAST; for chest pain, sit the person down, keep them calm and call 155; for a sprained ankle use rest, ice, compression, elevation; for a diabetic collapse give sugar if conscious.
Risk management tools
Headcounts, a lost-person protocol (last meeting point, ten-minute wait, contact number, notification), weather cancellation rules, and a written accident record. Mention the specific hazards of your site aloud: pickpockets on Charles Bridge, wet stone in caves, traffic on unguarded crossings.
Trap: acting the hero - moving an injured cyclist or giving food to an unconscious person.
Worked example: a guest collapses in a museum - secure the scene, check response and breathing, call 155 or delegate the call with the exact address, start CPR 30:2 if not breathing normally, send someone for the AED.
Rule of thumb: scene safety first, then shout for help, then ABC, then call.