First Aid, Safety and Injury Management
First aid is the immediate, temporary care given before professional help arrives. The exam tests the priority sequence, correct handling of common sports injuries, and the myths that cause damage.
Aims and priority
Preserve life, prevent deterioration, promote recovery. The sequence is Danger, Response, Airway, Breathing, Circulation (DRABC). For an unresponsive adult who is not breathing normally, start CPR at 30 compressions to 2 breaths, 100–120 compressions per minute, 5–6 cm deep.
Common injuries
- Sprain – torn or stretched ligament at a joint. Strain – injury to muscle or tendon.
- RICE – Rest, Ice for 15–20 minutes every 2–3 hours through a cloth barrier, Compression with an elastic bandage, Elevation above heart level.
- Fracture – immobilise with a splint covering the joints above and below, check the pulse beyond the splint, never attempt to reset the bone.
- Burn – cool with running water for 10–20 minutes, cover with a clean cloth; no toothpaste, oil or ice.
- Snake bite – keep the person calm and still, immobilise the limb, remove rings, no tourniquet, no cutting and sucking; transport to hospital for antivenom.
- Bleeding – direct pressure plus elevation. Nosebleed – sit up, lean forward, pinch the soft part of the nose for 10 minutes.
Worked example
A footballer rolls his ankle; swelling appears within minutes and he cannot bear weight but there is no deformity. Reasoning: no deformity and no bone tenderness suggest a ligament sprain, so RICE begins at once, with referral if pain or swelling worsens. Heat, massage and "running it off" are forbidden in the first 48 hours because they increase bleeding.
Traps that cost marks
- Placing ice directly on bare skin.
- Applying heat or massage in the first 48 hours.
- Using a tourniquet or cutting a snake bite.
- Splinting only the fracture site and ignoring the joints above and below.