PSA – First Aid Training, Just Do It!
So, I’ve been awake and doing stuff since 11:30pm yesterday. I had some ideas rolling around in my head which have prompted me to post my very first “BLOG” entry ever. I give you one important PSA in 2 parts.
Part 1 – Take that First Aid class you have been putting off taking. Truly, it isn’t that scary. I took a class with MIDSAR (Middle Creek Search and Rescue) this past Thursday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TG1GI0QvIjg
Now that I’ve watched the video several times, went through the class with Dee Utz, I don’t have any delusions of being an EMT or doctor, but I feel better about my chances of tending to an injury or medical problem until trained help arrives.
Part 2 – If you are seeking an assisted living situation for your family member/loved one, ASK if the aids are trained in first aid and get specific numbers. Last year my Mom was showing serious decline in her ADLs. She was losing the ability to feed herself. The other folks in Mom’s very small “Memory Care” unit had similar issues. One night the cook decided to serve some manner of shredded meat (I am thinking it was pork, but not sure) and 2 of the ladies choked on the meat as I was sitting there helping feed my Mom. One of the ladies needed abdominal thrusts to expel the food from her airway. This was how I found out that the only person on duty that evening who had first aid training was the one Med Tech on duty who was not in Memory Care at the time the choking episode occurred. The aide overseeing Memory Care did not have first aid training. Upon further inquiry with the facility administrator, come to find out, the ratio of “care givers” with first aid training vs. without was astonishingly low. SO…ASK the hard questions and get hard facts. Ask the aids on duty if they have first aid training. PUSH for your care facilities to make it a priority for their people to take this crucial VERY BASIC training.