Ways to help seriously injured accident victims

There may come a time where you are witness to an accident scene or are the first to arrive. Having some basic knowledge on how to best handle the scene will aid you in giving the right kind of assistance without causing further harm.

Every accident scene comes with its own challenges, communication being one of them. This could be as a result of severe injury, intoxication or shock – amongst other things.

As part of the accident scene series, we’re sharing some tips on how to still get the necessary information required to offer accurate (medical) assistance – even when the victim is unable to communicate.

• First, alert the victim that you are there to offer assistance and get the necessary information to help the paramedics while you wait for them to arrive.
• Remember to get consent from the victim before proceeding to assist. Before getting into the SAMPLE information, be sure to ask the others in the vehicle how they are related to the injured/unresponsive victim(s).Where possible, verify information given to you using documents like an ID or driver’s licence. You can never be completely sure when information is given by others; so if you can find these on the scene, present them to the paramedics to support whatever information you were able to get.
• Depending on the situation, as a first responder, there is only so much that you can do to verify the information you are given. Thereafter, it is up to the paramedics as “medical detectives” to match or compare the information presented with the patient’s condition and give the necessary medical attention.

Even with the above tips, getting the relevant medical information can sometimes prove unsuccessful. In the event of this happening, paramedics will still treat the crash victims – they cannot forgo giving medical assistance due to lack of personal medical information. There are various ways in which the medical professionals can obtain the necessary information, even if it means calling a relative at 2am.