What is the difference between poisoning and accidental first aid

The most essential difference between the two is that the starting point of the judgment logic and the priority of the first intervention are completely different - ordinary accident first aid must first preserve vital signs and then deal with the primary injury, while poisoning first aid must first cut off the source of the poison and prevent the poison from being absorbed, and then carry out symptomatic treatment.

I was particularly impressed by the fall-injury police at a construction site that I worked with before. A worker fell from a two-meter-high scaffolding and the steel bar pierced his forearm. The first thing he did when he arrived at the scene was to touch the carotid artery and measure blood oxygen to check for signs of intracranial and visceral bleeding. If there was open bleeding, Apply pressure first, and give oxygen to those with unstable breathing first. Only after these immediate life-threatening problems are stabilized can you dare to deal with problems such as fractures and trauma. This is the typical emergency first aid logic. Always focus on the bottom line of vital signs first, and other problems can be put in the back row.

But the logic of poisoning first aid is completely reversed. Last month, I received a police report about carbon monoxide poisoning in an old-fashioned residential area. When I opened the door, the first thing I did was not rush to the person to try to breathe. I opened the window wide to ventilate the person, and immediately carried the person to a place with fresh air in the corridor. Even if the person was already in a deep coma at the time, the source of the poison had to be cut off before any follow-up assessment. Think about it, if you perform chest compressions in a room full of carbon monoxide, not only will the rescuer be easily injured, but the patient will still inhale toxic gases, and the massage for a long time will be in vain.

Oh, by the way, this priority is not completely uncontroversial in the industry. Especially when encountering severely poisoned patients who have suffered cardiac arrest, many first-line first responders feel that if they don't have the time to move the person for more than ten seconds, the heartbeat may not be able to recover at all, so it is better to perform compressions on the spot for half a minute. Stabilize the cycle and then transfer, but the mainstream guidelines still insist on cutting off the poison first and then rescuing. After all, as long as the poison continues to enter the human body, all life support operations will be half the result with twice the effort. At present, the practical operation rules in different regions are not completely unified. When encountering special situations, it still depends on on-site judgment.

To put it bluntly, it is easy to understand. Accidental first aid is like a water pipe bursting at home. You must first plug the hole with the most leakage to prevent the whole house from being soaked, and then slowly repair other small cracks. First aid for poisoning is like a thief in the house. You must first drive the thief out and lock the door, and then slowly clean up the messed up things. Otherwise, you will be cleaning up and moving at the same time, and nothing will be left in the end.

We ordinary people don’t need to panic when something happens. If it is clear that it is poisoning, whether it is eaten by mistake, inhaled or stained on the skin, we should find a way to isolate the poison as soon as possible. If you eat something that can induce vomiting, induce vomiting. If it is contaminated, take off your clothes and rush. When calling 120, clearly explain the source of the poisoning, and bring the packaging and residue with you if you can. This is much more effective than calling people in a panic.