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First Aid & Emergency Response Cheat Sheet
A printable reference covering DRSABCD, CPR, AED use, choking, bleeding, burns, and emergency calling for grades 6-9.
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First aid and emergency response help students know what to do in the first few minutes of an injury or medical emergency. This cheat sheet covers safe action steps for checking danger, calling for help, giving basic care, and supporting someone until trained help arrives. Students need these steps because quick, calm, and correct action can reduce harm and may save a life. The core method is DRSABCD: Danger, Response, Send for help, Airway, Breathing, CPR, and Defibrillation. Important protocols include calling the local emergency number, using 30 compressions to 2 breaths for CPR if trained, following AED voice prompts, applying direct pressure for bleeding, and cooling burns under running water for 20 minutes. The main rule is to protect your own safety first, then get adult or emergency help as quickly as possible.
Key Facts
- DRSABCD means Danger, Response, Send for help, Airway, Breathing, CPR, and Defibrillation.
- Always check Danger first because you should not enter traffic, fire, electricity, water hazards, violence, or any unsafe scene.
- If a person does not respond, tell a specific person to call the local emergency number and bring an AED if one is available.
- If a person is not breathing normally, start CPR if trained using 30 chest compressions followed by 2 rescue breaths.
- CPR compressions should be hard and fast at a rate of 100 to 120 compressions per minute.
- For severe bleeding, apply firm direct pressure with a clean cloth or dressing and keep pressure on until help arrives.
- For a burn, cool the area under cool running water for 20 minutes and do not use ice, butter, or oils.
- For choking, encourage coughing if the person can cough, but call for help and use trained choking first aid if the person cannot breathe, speak, or cough.
Vocabulary
- First aid
- First aid is the immediate help given to a sick or injured person until professional medical help arrives.
- Primary survey
- A primary survey is a quick safety and life check used to find and treat the most urgent problems first.
- CPR
- CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, is a rescue method that uses chest compressions and sometimes breaths to help blood and oxygen move through the body.
- AED
- An AED, or automated external defibrillator, is a device that checks heart rhythm and may deliver a shock during cardiac arrest.
- Recovery position
- The recovery position is a side-lying position used for an unresponsive person who is breathing normally to help keep the airway open.
- Shock
- Shock is a dangerous condition where the body does not get enough blood flow, often causing pale skin, weakness, fast breathing, or confusion.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Rushing in without checking danger is wrong because you can become another injured person and make the emergency worse.
- Calling for help too late is wrong because emergency responders, adults, and AEDs take time to arrive.
- Moving an injured person without a safety reason is wrong because it can worsen head, neck, back, or broken bone injuries.
- Putting ice, butter, or ointment on a fresh burn is wrong because it can damage tissue or trap heat instead of cooling the injury safely.
- Stopping pressure on a serious bleed to keep checking it is wrong because firm, continuous pressure is needed to slow blood loss.
Practice Questions
- 1 During CPR, how many compressions are given before 2 rescue breaths in one standard cycle?
- 2 If CPR compressions are done at 110 compressions per minute, about how many compressions are done in 2 minutes?
- 3 A burn has been cooled under running water for 8 minutes. How many more minutes are needed to reach the recommended 20 minutes?
- 4 Why should checking for danger come before checking the injured person’s response?