SAVE YOUR OWN LIFE

What do you do if you’re alone in an emergency. this week: Bleeding WITH severe cuts you need to act quickly to stop excessive blood loss and unconsciousness. It is possible to bleed out your entire blood volume in around a minute from a serious wound, according to Alan Weir, head of clinical services at St John Ambulance.

Grip the wound firmly with a clean towel or cloth, apply pressure and raise it to at least the level of the heart. If your leg is bleeding, lie down and lift it (to make it harder for blood to flow against gravity) until emergency help arrives.

As a general rule, do not apply a tourniquet. This stops the blood flow completely, but also starve the limb of oxygen; if the pressure is not released in time, irreparable tissue damage will occur.

Also, don’t try to remove anything that is embedded in a wound because it could be forming a plug.