Safe Work Environments

Safe Work Environments

Create a safe work environment by providing your employees with important knowledge of safe practices and safe responses. Sometimes a person’s intervention is not the best choice in an emergency. Training your employees how to respond is critical, but when to respond is just as important. Your employees need to know how to administer basic first aid and the primary goals of first aid.

Goals of First Aid

The primary goals of first aid are to preserve life, prevent further injury, and promote recovery. It is NOT a medical treatment but rather a way to support an injured individual until professionals can arrive. Untrained employees should not attempt to do more than they know in an effort to help. Employees need to know how to assess the situation and know what to do in the moment. They will need to survey the situation for danger around the injured person as well as themselves or other staff members. If the scene is dangerous, it will not help to rush in and make rash decisions. They also need to be able to see the cause of the injury before they start to act. They should know when to move an injured person and when not to. Once they have assessed all these factors, then they can prepare to administer the basic first aid requirements. Part of first aid is trying to keep the injured person calm, which can’t be done if the first aid responder is not calm. Calling 911 needs to be done even if the employee thinks they can help. A bystander can call if they know what’s going on while another person administers the necessary first aid treatments. Some cases may not require 911 and basic first aid can handle the issue at hand, but when in doubt, don’t wait and don’t risk it.

Know Common Medical Conditions

Our training will help employees be able to recognize common medical conditions. These include seizures, shock, stroke, heart attacks, choking, and respiratory distress. Recognizing and understanding these different medical episodes will provide employees will important knowledge that will help them better assess how to respond.

Always be Proactive and Protect Yourself

In emergency situations, it’s easy for emotions to take over and for people to make rash decisions. Take a deep breath and remain calm. In some cases, you may need to wear protective equipment such as gloves, masks, face shields or goggles, or maybe even a disposable gown. If the scene is unsafe, don’t play the hero. This makes it harder for first responders, even if your intentions are good. Also, don’t let pride get in in the way. If someone on scene has more medical training than you do, let them take over. Keep the area clear instead and be the one that stays on the phone with emergency responders.

There are many ways to handle emergency situations. The more you know, the better you can respond. Provide your employees with as many beneficial tools as possible by implementing thorough, high-quality training. Contact Shield-Safety for all your training questions for the best selection of emergency products on the market.

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