Melinda The core answer is actually very clear - first aid is the most advanced and public link in the emergency health system, and it is also the core variable that determines the final intervention effect of health emergencies.
Last summer, I came across a ready-made example when I was on duty at a community free clinic. Uncle Zhang, who was performing a square dance, suddenly fell over while holding his chest. His wife was so panicked that she could not stand upright. Fortunately, there was a retired pediatric nurse next to her who had just passed the first aid certificate. She immediately laid the person down and performed chest compressions. Then she went to the community service station to get an AED for defibrillation. It only took 6 minutes. By the time the 120 ambulance arrived, Uncle Zhang could speak vaguely. Later, he went to the hospital to get a brace, and now he can still walk every day. The doctor who received the call later told us that if we were delayed by three or four minutes, even if we could be saved, there would be a high probability of irreversible brain damage. This is the value of first aid - it directly moves the emergency health intervention point from the hospital emergency room to the first scene of the accident.
However, there are actually different voices in the industry regarding the weight relationship between the two. When I attended the Provincial Emergency Health Summit, I heard two completely different opinions. Some experts who engage in on-site first aid training believe that first aid is the core of emergency health. After all, all plans, supplies, and popular science must ultimately be implemented in the few minutes when an accident occurs. If no one dares to save or knows how to save at the scene, no matter how perfect the subsequent treatment system is, it will not be able to catch up with the golden rescue time. However, some public health scholars disagree with this statement and feel that the role of first aid should not be overestimated. Emergency health is a full-chain system that covers daily risk screening, pre-popular science and early warning, on-site treatment, and follow-up rehabilitation follow-up. If the community had done regular screenings in advance for elderly people with a history of hypertension and coronary heart disease like Uncle Zhang, and reminded him not to dance too vigorously in the square during the dog days of summer, maybe this myocardial infarction would not occur at all. First aid is just the last line of defense.
In fact, both views are not wrong. Team Li from the Municipal Emergency Center gave us a very vivid analogy before, saying that emergency health is like building a protective net against falls for the health and safety of residents. Daily health management and risk warning are the latitude and longitude lines that make the net denser, and subsequent transportation and treatment are the net. There is a cushion pad at the bottom, and the first aid is the top layer of mesh that catches people first - when there is a real step in the air, the mesh is strong enough to catch the person immediately, so that the cushion pad at the back can play its role. However, if the holes are usually repaired, the person will not step in the air at all, and naturally there is no need for the mesh to catch the person.
In the past two years, I have visited more than 20 communities to popularize first aid science. At first, many people waved their hands and said, "I'm not a doctor, why should I learn this?" Since word about Uncle Zhang spread, many uncles and aunts took the initiative to ask when the next training would be held, saying that at least they could help their wives and children at home if something happened to them. To put it bluntly, first aid is not a superior medical technology, it is just the most practical emergency health weapon that ordinary people can hold in their hands.
