First Aid to Injuries There

First Aid to Injuries

There are basic skills and knowledge relating to first aid that Aron Ralston used while he was trapped in the Blue John Canyon a Slot Canyon for 127 hours when a rock fell on his hand squeezing it against the wall of the canyon hence making it impossible to pull out.

One of the first aid skills that he used was to apply a makeshift tourniquet on his arm to constrict the blood vessels and control bleeding. He then snapped the two bones close to the wrist and used the utility knife he had to cut through the flesh and free himself. The tourniquet helped in controlling the excessive bleeding after cutting through the skin and muscles.

Though in shock, Aron knew that being strong and staying still was a precursor to slowing down the heartbeat rate hence reduction in the metabolism of the body and knew that for him to conserve maximum energy within him, he had to stay as still as possible particularly during the day when the heat wears out the energy in the body. He mostly tried to sit against the opposite wall and have maximum rest as could be possible.

Aron had to amputate his arm at last and this he kept as the last option and not a priority. This is an indication that in first aid, there are those options that are resorted into as a last measure and not as the first priority. This was after realizing that his arm had formed gangrene and was a potential cause for further infection to the upper part of the arms. The most significant aspect of the amputation of the arms that he did himself was the fact that he avoided open wounds that could result in bleeding and snapped the two bones first before he cut through the skin and the muscles.

While attempting to detach himself from the rock by amputating his arm at first, he suffered lacerations from the short blade knife though he never succeeded in doing so. The best he did was to stop the bleeding by applying pressure on the lacerations for long enough to stop the bleeding.

Once his arm was crushed by the rock, Aron suffered closed wound. This is usually characterized by internal bleeding and the affected part grows numb and cold. The best first aid treatment for such is to immobilize the body and particularly the affected part especially in the absence of ice that can be placed over the closed wound as was Aron's case. The reason for immobilizing the part and the body is to reduce the internal bleeding. This is exactly what he did, he calmed himself down and tried to avoid movements at the initial time when his arm was crushed.

After the amputation, he ended up with an open wound that was prone to further bleeding and even infection. To avoid such from happening, the wound was adequately covered with the available clothing.

Aron also ended up with crashed bones on his right arm after breaking free from the grip of the rock. This meant he was to travel with he fracture over a distance. To reduce the pain and further damage to the fracture, the appropriate first aid was a makeshift sling that he used to firmly fasten and secure his arm against his chest to reduce the movement of the arm.

Aron also suffered sprains which are the partial or complete tearing stretching of ligaments and other tissues and the bones are forced beyond their normal usual range or motion. The first aid skill that he used to handle this in the short-term was to elevate it above the heart as is recommended. This elevation ensures there is minimum swelling of the sprain. Aron used the sling to achieve this.