TOTAPS is a way of  assessing sports injuries in athletes and amateur players. It provides an easy way of remembering all the steps in assessing a sports injury before allowing a player to return...

Heat stroke occurs from the sudden loss of the body’s ability to control its core temperature. Heat stroke is a medical emergency which first aiders should be able to recognise and summon early advanced...

The British Standard BS 8599 sets out the requirements for first aid kits in the workplace. The rules can seem confusing for some organisations and employers. In this first aid blog post we explain...

In this blog post we discuss the anatomy of the spinal cord for first aiders and first responders.  The spinal cord is a collection of nerve fibres connecting the brain to nerves which pass...

The skeletal system consists of a rigid framework of bones (206 in the adult) that perform many functions. They: provide structural support for the body protect vital body organs (e.g. brain, heart, lungs) provide an...

Shock is the term used to describe the condition of a casualty when the oxygen supply to the tissues is inadequate to meet the needs of the body. First aiders and first responders should...

The respiratory system can be divided into two sections: upper and lower. The upper respiratory system includes the nostrils, nasal cavity, mouth, pharynx (throat) and larynx (voice box). The throat is a common passageway...

Universal precautions (also commonly called standard precautions) are the basis of an approach to infection control which treats all human blood and materials as potentially infectious, and include: engineering controls administrative controls which include workplace...

Fractures and dislocations are common injuries to our musculoskeletal system. Most of us will break a bone in our lifetime! So what’s the difference between a fracture (broken bone) and dislocation? What is a...

The Apgar score is a standardised way of checking the health of a newborn baby. It was named after its creator, Dr Virginia Apgar, Professor of Anesthesiology at Columbia University in the USA, who died...

A subconjunctival hemorrhage is a bleed beneath the surface of the eye (known as the conjunctiva). The most common cause is a burst blood vessel underlying the conjunctiva.  The blood vessels which supply the...

Oropharyngeal (OP) airways are curved plastic devices that assist in the maintenance of an adequate airway in the unresponsive casualty. The OP airway by itself does not replace correct airway management practices and should...

Bipolar Disorder otherwise known as manic depressive disorder is a mental health illness where patients experience periods of extreme elation or mania and periods of depression hence the term ‘bipolar’. It effects approximately 1/100...

According to the World Health Organisation, approximately 47.5 million people world wide suffer from Dementia. This number is set to sky rocket with the increasing elderly population. The term ‘dementia’ encompasses a group of...