What do you do when you see a person collapse or lying unconscious or unresponsive on the ground? Call 911? What if they fail to reach on time? Do you feel helpless and disappointed in yourself? Such scenarios occur day-in and day-out everywhere, taking hundreds of lives because of a lack of immediate medical intervention. Out of 1.5 million cardiac arrest victims each year, only a few make it to the hospital in the U.S.
The world is a crazy place to live in. Natural hazards, unforeseen events, medical emergencies, and technological threats jeopardize human lives in the blink of an eye. Lack of essential first-aid and immediate medical assistance takes several lives every year worldwide. However, your simplest actions may become the difference between life and death for someone who requires immediate attention. What the world needs is not superheroes but humans with life-saving skills and knowledge. Whether physical or emotional, your little support can go a long way in saving precious lives and even preventing tragic events from occurring in the first place.
So, what are you waiting for? Instead of waiting for someone to come and save a life, why not be one to do so? Keep reading to find some easy ways to start.
Learn basic medical skills
Start your learning journey with CPR training. Now you must be thinking that CPR is only used for heart attack patients. Well, that’s where you are wrong. According to the American Heart Association, approximately 7 million children and adults suffer severe disabling injuries due to accidents that may require CPR. Still, cardiac arrest claims more lives in the U.S annually than any other disease. So, become adept in CPR and learn how to give basic first-aid to any victim. If you are an ardent humanitarian, get yourself registered in EMT refresher courses and become the first responder to those in need. Such courses will not only make you a crackerjack at providing CPR, but will also make you an expert in providing essential medical care like stopping external bleeding, applying neck braces, etc., to emergency patients.
Become a blood and organ donor
When you set out to make a positive difference in the lives of others, one effective way to do so is through blood and organ donation. With the ever-increasing rate of recipients, the need for blood donations never ends. Every 2 seconds, someone in the U.S needs blood, and with one blood donation, you can save up to 3 lives. Isn’t that great? So, set up a blood drive campaign either at your school or your workplace and save up millions of lives. You can take your humanitarian services a step further with an organ donation. It’s the most selfless yet the most rewarding thing a person can do in their life. With this selfless act, you may fulfill someone’s long-cherished dream of watching a sunrise.
Register for bone marrow donation
A bone marrow or cord transplant may be the last resort for patients who have blood cancer, leukemia, sickle-cell anemia, and many other diseases. For thousands of blood cancer patients out there, you could be the cure. Bone marrow transplant regenerates the immune system of patients allowing them to live longer and healthier lives. So, take the first step to be someone’s cure, sign up to join the bone marrow registry, and board the miraculous journey of saving lives.
Check up on a friend with suicidal ideations
When you set out to help someone, firstly check up on the ones around you. Some people have innate tendencies of self-harm that dominate as they experience stress, making them vulnerable to suicidal ideations. When you hear a friend talking about life being unfair to them, or someone who experiences a breakup or job loss, reach out to them. Ask them to share their emotions so they can feel light. Alert their relatives about their mental health status and counsel them to the best of your ability. If the symptoms reach a dangerous level, refer them to a professional psychologist for help or call the local suicide hotline for an intervention.
Learn to perform abdominal thrusts
Every year, thousands of people die from choking on objects that get stuck in their airways and cause suffocation. According to the National Safety Council, choking is the fourth leading cause of unintentional injury death. The most common victims of this type of death are kids, as they swallow anything and everything. However, you can use a simple technique called the Heimlich maneuver when you see someone choking. This technique lifts the diaphragm and expels air from the lungs, thus causing the foreign object to be expelled from the airways and body. It is an easy-to-learn technique that can prevent a choking victim from permanent brain damage or even death.
Get your hands on a defibrillator
This is a device used to give electric shocks to someone who is in a cardiac arrest. You don’t need to be a medical professional to use a defib; anyone with sufficient knowledge and skill can use it. The device assesses by itself if the person needs a shock. Only then it allows you to deliver one. With every passing second, the survival rate of a patient in cardiac arrest decreases by 10%. This is why deliberation and CPR are crucial. So, inquire if your school or workplace has a defib and ask the authorities to install one if not. This way, you can play your part in normalizing the rhythm of a person’s heart and saving a life.
Conclusion
Saving a life is like saving humanity- or at least a fraction of it. When someone’s life is on the line, every second counts, and doing something is better than doing nothing in that timeframe. This article mentions few simple ways to save people. These include learning CPR, using a defibrillator, donating blood and organs, learning Heimlich maneuvers, etc. With these simple ways, you may not save all those in need, but you will contribute positively. The next time a person collapses on the ground or chokes or needs a life-saving transfusion, you won’t feel like a helpless bystander but become the first responder and save lives.
