Today I spent the day updating my first aid knowledge. I have always believed that it’s important to have the basic knowledge and skills to be able to react and help in an emergency, and my first course was as a teenager when I was a Girl Guide, but it had been a few years since my most recent course – which was one specifically for babies and young children that we went to when our daughter was born – so I knew it was high time I went and got some hands-on practice and refreshed my memory. And it was great. Not only did I get the opportunity to practise CPR/chest compressions (which are flipping hard work) and bandaging various different wounds, but we discussed how to react if you suspect someone might be suffering from a stroke (applying the FAST procedure) or a heart attack (did you know that the symptoms in men and women differ somewhat?), what to be aware of at the scene of a road accident, and how to deal with things like asthma attacks, burns, (epileptic) fits, heat stroke and various other situations. Would you know what to do?
And while I hope I’ll never need to apply any of what I’ve learnt, I can’t imagine how awful it would feel to be in a situation and not know what to do – be that at home, out and about, or during one of my courses. So that is why I like to make sure my knowledge is up to date and I am as prepared as I can be in case I am ever faced with a medical emergency.
If you would like to take a course, there are plenty available in English in the greater Frankfurt area – search the Internet for “Erste Hilfe Training Englisch” and you should find one (especially as in Germany it is a requirement when you learn to drive, so there are generally always lots of courses on offer.) I’m sure you’ll agree it’s time well spent. 