EMERGENCY FIRST RESPONSE
How to Call for Help?
The quicker an alert is given, the better the chance that the victim will be cared for efficiently. In the United States, the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system provides medical assistance (including telephone advice) in an emergency. As a resource for EMS, there is one toll-free national emergency number —911— which may be dialed from any landline, mobile, or pay phone without inserting a coin Some cities also offer a local emergency number. Check your local phone book for this number.
How to React? (excerpt)
• Make sure to take preventive measures to warn others. For example: turn on your hazard lights in the case of a car accident; place flares, cones, or triangles alongside the road a few hundred feet away from the accident.
• Evaluate the situation and the status of the injured in order to give detailed information to the rescuers.
• By dialing the emergency number, you are connected to an EMS dispatcher. Your message needs to include the following details:
- The type of accident and potential risks (fire, explosion, etc.);
- The place of the accident (town, street, number, zip code, as well as any vital information for the rescue team, which will help them better understand the situation);
- Your phone number and your name;
- The number of persons involved and in need of help;
- The condition of each victim as well as any first aid that may have been applied.
• Once you relay the information, do not hang up! Wait to see if the dispatcher has any more questions; let them hang up first.
• Never leave the victim alone.
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