Guide · First aid

Checking an injured person

When you find someone hurt or collapsed, a quick, calm check tells you what matters most. If they are unresponsive or badly hurt, call your local emergency number (112 in Europe and many other countries, 911 in North America) as soon as you can, or get someone else to.

1. Danger

1. Stop and look around before you go in: traffic, fire, falling objects, electricity, deep or fast water, gas.
2. Only approach if it is safe. You can't help anyone if you become a casualty too.
3. Put on gloves if you have them.

2. Response

1. Kneel by their shoulders and speak loudly: "Can you hear me? Open your eyes."
2. Gently tap or squeeze their shoulders.
3. If they answer or move, they are responsive. Leave them as they are unless they're in danger, ask what happened and look for injuries.
4. If there is no response, shout for help and carry on with the checks.

3. Airway

1. Leave them on their back. Place one hand on their forehead and gently tilt the head back.
2. With two fingertips, lift the chin.
3. If you can see something in the mouth, remove it only if you can do so easily. Don't sweep blindly with your fingers.

4. Breathing

1. Keep the airway open. Put your cheek near their mouth and look along the chest.
2. Look, listen and feel for normal breathing for no more than 10 seconds.
3. Occasional gasps, snoring noises or irregular sighs are not normal breathing. Treat them as not breathing.

Not breathing normally: call for help, ask someone to fetch an AED (defibrillator) if one might be nearby, and start CPR straight away.

Breathing normally: put them in the recovery position and keep checking their breathing until help arrives.

5. Circulation and other injuries

Once breathing is sorted, check quickly from head to toe:

• Heavy bleeding: press hard on it at once.
• Pale, cold, clammy skin and a fast pulse may mean shock.
• Look for swelling, odd angles of limbs, burns and medical bracelets or cards.
• Ask a responsive person where it hurts and what they take medicine for.

If the person may have hurt their neck or back (a fall, a crash, a dive into shallow water), keep the head and neck still unless you need to move them to keep the airway open or get them away from danger.

Keep checking

Things can change quickly. Recheck response and breathing every few minutes and note what you find, so you can pass it on to rescuers.

This guide does not replace a first-aid course. A few hours of hands-on practice will make you far more confident when it matters.

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