First aid is the first thing a patient should receive if they are in a medical emergency. Hence learning is very important. The name of the course that I attended was “Basic Online first aid” and it was offered by firstaidforfree.com. The course contained four different modules named, Introduction to First Aid, The Unconscious Victim, Bleeding & Shock, and Burns & Scalds. Learning first aid will not only help you take preventive or necessary measures during a medical emergency, but it can also help save other people’s lives. First aid can mean the difference between life and death, and many tragedies could have been prevented if more of us knew about first aid. My goal was to learn the basics of first aid to be prepared for any emergency.
Learning Outcomes
Learning Outcome 1 – Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth
It’s a risky task to learn, as one’s life is important when used in real-life situations; so there can be no error. Therefore, it is important to know my weaknesses and strengths. During my childhood, I learned different first aid measures through observation and school. My Strength is my prior knowledge of CPR, fractures, sprains, and bruises. I also believe that my technique is up to the mark, so mistakes are not possible. My weakness is the fear of making a mistake and being the reason someone dies because one of the things I don’t ever want to be is the reason someone has lost a loved one. Sometimes it makes my hands shake, in a medical emergency we have to be precise and a bad cut can kill someone. It is important to know about your weaknesses and strengths because now I can understand where I need to improve and focus, so there is no scope for mistakes.
Learning Outcome 2- Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process.
There were numerous difficulties that I faced throughout the course, for example, I could not understand the vocabulary. I am not an experienced lifelong learner in science and I don’t remember the terminology so every time I had to search the internet to see what is taking me a long time. Second, to get the certificate, I have to memorize all the information, which took a long time, because memorizing something that hasn’t been learned in a long time takes a lot of time. Besides, in order to memorize and learn these difficult words I had to spend a lot of time outside of the busy schedule as I am an IB student, I have a lot of assignments and homework so I had to manage my time more efficiently to do this I planned to complete 1 concept a day. Lastly, I had to overcome the fear of making mistake, to do this I had to have a lot of practice so that the probability that I make a mistake will be very small and therefore I did not have the fear in my head anymore.
Learning Outcome 3-Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience and
Learning Outcome 4 – Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences
As I said, the course is very long, in order to use my time effectively so that I have time for other activities and studies, so I planned to finish one chapter of a course per day. Having a scheduled schedule has kept me from procrastinating and getting work done on time, it has also kept me on track with my other school stuff and extracurricular activities. As stated above the course being so long and not part of my syllabus was frustrating at times, hence commitment and perseverance were crucial. Even though it was frustrating I had to put in the effort as it was a very important life lesson. Hence, I planned in such a way that I complete the course at small intervals each day to make progress. Showing commitment allowed me to be focused on one particular topic and understand it very well so that I avoid making any mistakes in case of any medical emergencies.
Learning Outcome 6- Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance
The subject of global concern is health and well-being. The importance of learning first aid is that it provides the person being trained with the ability to save lives. Research shows that “up to 150,000 people in the UK die each year in situations where first aid could make a difference.” In addition, first aid can benefit those affected, whether or not they are directly affected by an emergency, and first aid can often mitigate the severity of an emergency at any given time. Therefore, it was a necessity to learn such an important life lesson that it can be useful to me, my loved ones, and those around me.
Learning Outcome 7- Recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions
To be eligible for the certificate, we had to pass each of the tests given at the end of each module. The test was carried out to check our knowledge after each module, it was also carried out to maintain our current position. In solving the test, ethics played a big role in whether I honestly give the test or not. If I cheated on the test, I wouldn’t be able to use my first aid knowledge in a real medical emergency and this could be a cause of death. It would also be a waste of time because if I cheat, it means that I do not understand the module and will not correctly perform first aid in an emergency, which could make a person’s condition worse. Getting the test done honestly means that in the event of a medical emergency, I could save someone’s life.
