CHAPTER 4:First-aid, rescue operations

003 Lecture for further improvement of lifesaving efficiency

Considering that the average time of ambulance arrival on site is about 6 minutes and that 50% of the victims die in about 3 minutes after cardiac arrest, the first aid made by bystanders (persons who happen to be present at the site) is thought to be a very important key for life saving. Thus, there is no doubt that many lives can be saved if skills and knowledge of first aid were widely acquired by the general public. Fire and Disaster Management Agency established the " Implementation manual on promotion activities to diffuse and enlighten first-aid." in March 1993. According to these procedures, Fire and Disaster Management Agency is implementing improved practical guidance so that even ordinary people can perform cardio-pulmonary resuscitation for a person after cardiac arrest. The number of students attending the lecture was around 250,000 in 1994, but it has gradually increased and exceeded 1.02 million during 2002. Currently, it is popular to learn certain first aid skills at local fire stations.

Innovative life saving item: [AED (Automated External Defibrillator)]

If a person collapses due to a heart problem, the cause is usually ventricular fibrillation, which, in many cases, results in a poor condition where the heart cannot supply blood to the entire body. In this situation, the most effective treatment is defibrillation (electrical shock) treatment to stimulate the cardiac muscle. Originally, only a medical doctor was allowed to perform this treatment, but Emergency Life-Saving Technicians have now been approved to perform this treatment, which now saves many lives. Now we can say that the AED is quite useful for performing defibrillation (electrical shock). In many countries, such as the United States, many AED are deployed in public locations, such as airports. As it can be easily operated by following the audio instructions after turning the device on, any ordinary person can use it. Also in Japan, the restrictions are revised to make it available for use.

004 Special rescue teams are reliable in an emergency: [Rescue]

It is a member of a rescue team who first grabs the hand of a person who needs help. People who need help are those who remained on an island in a swollen river, are in distress on a mountain with a help sign, or who are confined in an automobile in an accident. Rescue team members are professionals who rush to dangerous disaster sites where people who need help are in critical condition, and then bring the distressed persons out alive. It is a professional team with courage that undertakes rescue activities in any dangerous situation, such as fires, traffic accidents, explosions, drownings, natural disasters, and distress in the mountains. A rescue team consists of two groups one that has been given advanced special instruction and training required for rescue activities, and one that has rescue vehicles full of supplies and equipment. Special rescue teams numbering 1,493 are deployed at 859 fire defense headquarters with a total number of team members of about 24,000. It is a duty to deploy a　 special rescue team in cities with a population of 100,000 or more. Rescue activities have become more complex and diversified recently, and the supplies and equipment special rescue teams require have become more sophisticated and specialized. In view of this, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency is preparing a subsidy for local governments to purchase these.

Special hard training for rescue teams

Hard training of rescue teams is performed in a deep diving pool using an aqualung and on a single rope at a dizzying height. A wide range of strenuous activities that simulate various emergency situations are conducted to facilitate the first priority of saving life. Rescue activities require an immediate and appropriate response to save victims in various conditions and a variety of circumstances. It goes without saying that the skills and instincts of rescue team members as specialists will determine the destiny of people's lives. A rescue team consists of selected firefighters who are brave, in good physical condition, and have excellent judgment. In order to be qualified, they must pass strenuous testing, so the rescue team members in their orange uniforms are well respected by other firefighters.