When you find yourself in an emergency situation and trying to help, you may become panicked or unsure of where to start. The three C’s of first are a simple way to keep you focused and more prepared to help those around you.
The 3 C’s of first aid are:
- Check
- Call
- Care
Check
The first “C” stands for “check” – first check your surroundings, then check the victim.
Check your surroundings:
- Make sure the environment is safe so that you don’t become a victim as well
- See if you can determine the reason the person(s) are hurt or the method of injury (MOI)
- If possible, make the area safe by removing hazards that contributed the injury: put out a fire, get the person out of the water, turn off the car, etc.
- Make sure you’re safe from traffic, machinery, etc.
Next, check the victim. Make sure they are out of harm’s way. See if they are responsive, breathing, or have a pulse.
Call
The second “C” stands for “call for help“. As someone providing first aid, it’s your role to try to get help from professionals as quickly as possible. If there are others around, yell to them for help. You or someone else can apply life-saving measures to keep the person alive while the other calls 911. Other people can also find an AED or a first aid kit. If you are alone, call 911 or your local emergency service yourself. When speaking with the dispatcher, give as many details as possible, as clearly as possible. Include your exact location, number of people injured, any indications of how the injury occurred, or if there are still hazards present.
Care
The third “C” of first aid is to provide care. The care that you provide will be dependent on your comfort level and training. Treat the most serious injuries first. If the person is unresponsive, apply the C.A.B. protocol you’ve learned in CPR training. You may also need to stop severe bleeding, protect someone who is having a seizure, and generally ensure that the situation doesn’t get worse. Take the time to comfort and reassure those who are injured.
Make sure to stay with the person until help arrives and pass on any useful information that you have found to first responders.
Final thoughts
The three C’s of first aid are listed in order and will help you provide focused help in an emergency situation. In order to apply the 3 C’s (especially when providing care) nothing will be more beneficial than formal training like CPR and first aid classes.
Hi there! You know, when you argued that we must ensure a safe atmosphere before we attend to a victim and perform any kind of first aids, I found that to be hard to refute. My cousin is going on a field trip with his colleagues to a camp site where they’re gonna stay there for three days. I’ll share this useful tip with him so he could take the right actions whenever needed.