First Aid and Emergency Care
This domain tests whether you can act safely in the first minutes of an emergency: protect yourself, assess, summon help and give correct basic life support.
Sequence of action
Use DRABC - Danger, Response, Airway, Breathing, Circulation. Never enter an unsafe scene; call emergency services (108 in Karnataka) early and delegate bystanders.
CPR essentials
For an adult who is unresponsive and not breathing normally, give chest compressions at a rate of 100–120/min, depth 5–6 cm, in a ratio of 30 compressions to 2 breaths, with the heel of the hand on the lower half of the sternum. Use an AED as soon as it arrives. Children use 15:2 with two rescuers; infants use two fingers or the two-thumb technique.
Common emergencies
- Choking adult: five back blows, then five abdominal thrusts (Heimlich manoeuvre).
- Severe bleeding: direct pressure with a clean cloth, elevate the limb, do not remove soaked dressings - add on top.
- Burns: cool with running water for 20 minutes, cover loosely; no ice, toothpaste or oil.
- Fracture: immobilise with a splint including the joint above and below.
- Snake bite: keep the patient calm, immobilise the limb, no tourniquet, no incision, no sucking.
- Fainting: lie supine with legs raised. Seizure: protect the head, do not restrain or force anything into the mouth.
Triage colours
Red = immediate, yellow = delayed, green = minor, black = deceased or expectant.
Worked example
A man collapses in the corridor; he does not respond and is not breathing normally. Reasoning: scene is safe, so check response, open the airway, look for normal breathing for no more than 10 seconds; absent normal breathing means start CPR at 30:2, send someone for the AED, and continue until help arrives. A lay rescuer need not check a pulse.
Traps that cost marks
Using 15:2 for adults; giving water to an unconscious person; applying ice to burns; applying a tight tourniquet for snake bite.