Red Cross Adopts Global First Aid Certification
By Andrew Ahiante
National societies of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies all over the world are to adopt a global First Aid certification by the year 2005.
The document is expected to present a set of common principles to apply in specific situations, such as the emergency removal of a casualty, or caring for a person suffering from severe external bleeding, skin burns or a fracture.
Chairman of the Nigerian Red Cross Society, Lagos State Branch, Otunba Anthony Olusegun Odugbesan, who gave the indication yesterday as the society joined other national societies to mark this year World First Aid Day, revealing that within the last three years over three thousand first aiders have been trained by the society all over the country to help respond to emergency situations.
The World First Aid Day, usually commemorated every September 11, took place yesterday as the federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies launched their first-ever recommendations on the international harmonisation of life saving practices. The global First Aid Certification is expected to be based on this set of practices.
"Since 1863, the Interna-tional Red Cross Movement has committed itself, as a humanitarian organisation to protect and save lives. First Aid is therefore an expression of those values and principles, which takes a holistic approach in meeting the physical, social and psychological needs of the injured," Odugbesan said.
He defined the act as a state of mind and a set of practices offering protective and life-saving measures to prevent, prepare and provide initial response to health emergencies.
"Emergency situations can include diseases, epidermis, heart attacks, road traffic crashes or accidents in the home. The initial response aims at minimising the impact of these health emergencies and to stabilise and treat persons until professional help is made available when necessary is known as First Aid," he stated.
Accordingly, he said, the Nigerian Red Cross Society inculcates in her trainees, prevention and common sense as key components in First Aid Education.
"When Red Cross Volunteers are taught in assisting victims of road traffic crashes, they are also sensitised to road safety. The same applies when training communities in managing outbreaks of diarrhoea. They are taught to improve their sanitation and hygienic practices", he said, adding that there were also an intrinsic psychological dimension and an incontestable ethical foundation in the training.
"A First Aider brings human warmth that helps to promote a more tolerant society. First Aiders offer a model of society that transcends borders, where mutual help is the rule, where men and women who suffer are helped regardless of their nationality, religion or ethnic group, simply and essentially because human dignity exists and should be respected", he stressed.
He said First Aid was very relevant to individual, family, corporate entities, advising that the community needed to obtain the capacities of First Aid, learn simple approach to its application as a way of maintaining useful and safe healthy life style.
"The Nigerian Red Cross Society aims to increase the proportion of families where at least one member has been trained in First Aid", he declared.
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