At the March SMAC Meeting, we invited Steve Thair, Area Manager and Community Advocate for St. John’s Ambulance to give us a talk on First Aid on board. Steve is impressively knowledgeable and I’m quite sure could have spent a lot longer than the 45 minutes allowed in educating us on this vital subject.
Although many of the members will have attended First Aid training at some point, it is easy to forget some of the things taught but Steve’s encyclopaedic knowledge brought us up to date.
The purpose of a First Aid Kit is by definition to patch up an injured person so that they can then go and get specialist help if required. Sometimes this is just to make someone more comfortable, other times it can help prevent further complications and in extreme cases it can also save lives.
On an angling boat travelling many miles out into the Channel, it could take over an hour to get back to land or in extreme cases even to get lifeboat or helicopter support, so an adequate First Aid kit and some basic First Aid knowledge are essential.
Steve asked us to describe the sort of injuries we had either experienced or were aware are likely when fishing in UK waters. These include cuts from sharp bait knives; penetration of sharp items such as hooks, baiting needles and gaffs; bites from conger and tope and falls against hard objects which can break bones.
Our First Aid kits need to contain items that can be used to treat these injuries, many of which can be extremely serious particularly if a blood vessel has been severed. A box of Band Aids isn’t going to be enough. Another fact to learn is that First Aid kits need to be regularly serviced and replenished because many items have a shelf life. There is no point having adhesive plasters that don’t stick or sealed dressings that are no longer sealed. I was shocked to discover that what I thought was a well prepared First Aid box on Rebel Runner was in fact out of date by at least five years!
Steve gave us all a list of what we need to keep on board (below). He recommended that we keep them in labelled bags within the kit so you can grab them based on the type of injury you are dealing with, rather than rummaging through the whole box in an emergency. There are ready-made compartmentalized bags available if you are flash. Other items recommended are Tuff-Cut scissors for clothing, small scissors for dressings and I have found tweezers very helpful for removing splinters.
Steve then demonstrated basic wound management with particular emphasis on reducing bleeding for deep injuries. This is very important for offshore First Aid where some time may pass before the injury can be dealt with by the professionals.
The talk finished with a quick recap on CPR and the use of a modern defibrillator. I was impressed with how good the modern AEDs are and how easy they are to use. We should all get ourselves familiar with the basics so we have the confidence to have a go when the need arises.
If anyone wants to buy more First Aid supplies to bring their kit up to standard, the St. John’s Ambulance shop has everything you need and prices are good.
The First Aid Manual is a very helpful guide and for the price, well worth buying and putting in your first Aid box.
