First Aid - Severe Bleeding
As of June 2024, this subject has been completely redone, including new video modules.
Languages: English
Media Editing: The video module(s) in this subject are editable under our Content Studio offering unless otherwise indicated. For more information about Content Studio, contact your CSM.
Description: Depending on your industry, the risk of employees receiving deep cuts or lacerations may range from minimal to severe. It's vital that everyone knows how to handle these types of injuries. Knowing what to do and what NOT to do could easily be a difference between a life saved and a tragedy. In this subject, employees are taught how to recognize severe bleeds and some best practices for stopping the bleed and caring for the injured person.
Note: This content may be used to supplement formal first aid training conducted by recognized providers such as the Red Cross and St. John Ambulance, but it is not intended to provide certifications and does not qualify as a formal first aid course.
As of June 2024, this subject has been completely redone, including new video modules.
Languages: English
Media Editing: The video module(s) in this subject are editable under our Content Studio offering unless otherwise indicated. For more information about Content Studio, contact your CSM.
Description: Depending on your industry, the risk of employees receiving deep cuts or lacerations may range from minimal to severe. It's vital that everyone knows how to handle these types of injuries. Knowing what to do and what NOT to do could easily be a difference between a life saved and a tragedy. In this subject, employees are taught how to recognize severe bleeds and some best practices for stopping the bleed and caring for the injured person.
Note: This content may be used to supplement formal first aid training conducted by recognized providers such as the Red Cross and St. John Ambulance, but it is not intended to provide certifications and does not qualify as a formal first aid course.
As of June 2024, this subject has been completely redone, including new video modules.
Languages: English
Media Editing: The video module(s) in this subject are editable under our Content Studio offering unless otherwise indicated. For more information about Content Studio, contact your CSM.
Description: Depending on your industry, the risk of employees receiving deep cuts or lacerations may range from minimal to severe. It's vital that everyone knows how to handle these types of injuries. Knowing what to do and what NOT to do could easily be a difference between a life saved and a tragedy. In this subject, employees are taught how to recognize severe bleeds and some best practices for stopping the bleed and caring for the injured person.
Note: This content may be used to supplement formal first aid training conducted by recognized providers such as the Red Cross and St. John Ambulance, but it is not intended to provide certifications and does not qualify as a formal first aid course.
Topics
Recognizing and Responding to Severe Bleeds
-
When someone suffers an injury that causes severe bleeding, it’s important to act quickly. Not only is the injured person losing blood too quickly, but they are also at a higher risk of other emergencies, like choking and severe shock, which can both cause cardiac arrest. This topic will teach you how to recognize severe bleeds and the immediate actions to take to protect yourself and help the injured person.
NOTE: This topic should be taken before “Basic First Aid for a Severe Bleed” as it contains prerequisite information.
-
Questions (level 1, 2, 3)
Video Module
-
This topic is currently available in English.
-
Losing blood from a severely bleeding wound can cause an injured person to go into serious shock, which is life-threatening. It’s vital that severe bleeds are controlled quickly.
To protect yourself from bloodborne infections, always wear sterile gloves when helping someone who is bleeding.
Those who suffer a severe bleed may lose consciousness as they lose blood. This increases their risk of choking, so if they become unresponsive, roll them onto their side.
If the person who is bleeding is conscious, lay them down on their back with their feet raised, as long as this doesn’t make them too uncomfortable. This helps minimize blood loss.
To properly control bleeding and manage the wound, remove or cut away any clothing covering the wound. If clothing is stuck in the wound, do not remove it.
If there is anything stuck in or sticking out of the wound, do not remove it. Large, embedded objects help control the bleeding, and removing them from the wound increases the risk that the wound will become infected.
If the bleeding can’t be controlled quickly and/or with direct pressure, the person needs emergency medical care. Ask someone in the area or use a speakerphone to call emergency services.
If a person is bleeding from their nose or mouth, have them lean forward so blood can drain away from their face. If they lean back, the blood could block their airway and stop their breathing.
Apply pressure to the soft part of the nose bridge, just below the hard cartilage by the eyes, to slow bleeding from the nose.
Basic First Aid for a Severe Bleed
-
All kinds of injuries can cause severe bleeds and it’s important to know how to respond based on what kind of wound an injured person has. In this topic, you’ll learn what to do if there is an object embedded in the wound, or if internal tissues are showing, and the basic principles of stopping bleeding.
NOTE: It is recommended that you complete “Recognizing and Responding to a Severe Bleed” before beginning this topic, as it contains prerequisite knowledge.
-
Questions (level 1, 2, 3)
Video Module
-
This topic is currently available in English.
-
If an object is stuck in the bleeding wound, use bulky, soft items or dressings to surround the item and secure it to the person’s body with bandages or tape.
If there isn’t an object in the bleeding wound, apply firm, strong pressure directly downward on the wound. You can use your hand at first, but replace it as soon as possible with a bulky, soft item or dressing that is more absorbent.
If there are organs, internal tissues, or bones exposed by the bleeding wound, avoid touching them, or attempting to place them back in the body. Instead, cover the exposed tissues with a moist, non-sticky dressing/cloth and bandage above and below the wound. Do not apply direct pressure to the wound or organs.
If you need to leave the injured person to get materials or call for help, ask them to use their hands or clothing to press down on their injury to slow the bleeding down.
If blood soaks through the first layer of dressings, do not remove them. Apply a second bandage on top of the first one to maintain pressure on the wound and replace the second layer as needed.
Continue applying direct pressure to a severely bleeding wound until the bleeding slows down or stops.
Once the bleeding has slowed, leave the dressings in place, and use a bandage or cloth to wrap and secure the dressing in place, making sure the bandage isn’t too tight.
Once a wound is bandaged, regularly check that it’s not too tight. If the injured person’s fingers, toes, or skin near the bandage get cold or lose feeling, loosen the bandage.
