I came from a place where people take a lot of things for granted until they have first-hand experience with the other side of it.
First aid is something that has been preached everywhere, right from when I was in primary school, I was taught about first aid. I believe it is because of its relevance that it is taught even at that level.
Unfortunately, many still don't take it seriously. In many organizations in this part of the world, especially private ones, the issue of first aid is not taken seriously. It's funny how if you visit some of them you might not even find a first aid box.
What many people fail to understand is that an accident is something we can't predict, it can happen anywhere, any day, and anytime. Taking little things like first aid for granted can cause loss that we are not prepared for if, not life itself.
In many homes there is no first aid box, when an emergency comes, instead of first administering a little treatment to cool it down, we get confused and start looking for how to reach the nearest clinic which is often far from us. A lot of times before we arrive there, the situation has already gotten worse.
A few years ago, I was in my class that fateful day during the break hour enjoying myself, when a pupil screamed. I quickly ran out in that direction, and arriving there I saw a pupil's chin bleeding seriously.
I was scared, so I ran to the headmistress's office and informed her, and both of us returned to the scene. When she saw him, fear gripped her. She asked me to go to her office and get some tissue paper, which I did.
We tried controlling the blood with the tissue but it didn't work. The school's first aid kit was empty, the only thing inside was a pair of scissors and paracetamol. We have been talking about buying the needed equipment for a long time but never did so. The only option we had at the moment was to rush the boy to the nearest pharmacy.
We were lucky the guy was around, he was attending to other customers but when we came, he had to excuse them to attend to us because of the boy's condition.
He didn't hesitate, he tidied up the wound and sealed it with a cotton and bandage. The cut was so deep. When we got back from the drugstore, we inquired from the pupil's classmates who were in class when the incident occurred and they said he was jumping on the desk and he slipped.
His class teacher was scolded for leaving them to themselves in the class. I felt for her because she was always there in the class, I don't know what happened that day.
The following day, the headmistress bought some important things that were lacking in our first aid box. We learned from our experience the hard way.
Don't wait until something happens before you take action. They say "Prevention is better than cure." Our first aid kit ought always to be ready and filled. We never can tell when an accident will occur.
