VICTIM OF ELECTRICAL SHOCK.
A person who lias suffered a severe electrical shock and is unconscious, needs prompt attention, just as a person needs it who has been taken unconscious from the water. In fact the method of first aid to a victim of electrical shock is a- great deal like the work of resuscitation of a nearly drowned person. Experts have adopted what is known as the "prone pressure" method of resuscitation. It has been recognised that shocks, from low voltage currents of from 110 to 500 volts, are usually extremely serious. i The method which is usually applied in cases of drowning or asphyxiation from any cause serves well in electrical shock cases. There are really five important points in this work: : Starting respiration as speedily as possible. The position of the victim. The position of the operator. The method of operation. The speed and the length of the operation.
The victim should be taken td once to a place where the air is reasonably pure, and where it is possible to work over him, but no time should be" lost in seeking such a place. If it is not actually at hand, do the next best thing by working on the premises, for no time should be' lost. A delay of one minute in beginning to reston respiration may prove fatal. The victim must be turned over on his stomach, but with his free to one side, so that his nose and mouth are free to the air, and if any foreign substances are in. his mouth or throat they must be removed. Whoever is working over the victim should kneel beside him, facing the victim's head. He then spreads the palms of the hands upon the lower ribs of the victim, holding his arms out straight to secure better force.
Resuscitation begins by a moderate pressure on the ribs, increased at the end of the pressure, then the pressure is quickly removed by swinging the elbows apart. ,It is better to have some one to hold a watch on this operation, giving throe seconds for the downward pressure arid two seconds of release. This should be. continued for at least three hours if the victim does not begin to breathe. After three hours of painstaking work with no results the ease is hopeless, but anywhere within the three hours the breathing is likely to begin when, with care, the life of the victim is saved. It is well to have a helper to take the place of the first worker, as his pressures will become weak and irregular in spite of careful timing- after n. half hour. Let the helper get in position, land upon the release by the first worker, take tip the pressures, giving the first man opportunity to rest. Of course, if a physician is handy *nd orders a different method after a trial of this, it is best to allow him to take charge. Unless the shock is extremely severe the chances are always favourable for recovery. The proper speed of respiration is twelve times a minute, and in the excitement care should be taken that this is not increased, as this is very likely to happen. Others may loosen the clothes of the victim, but the man working over him should lose no time in this manner, the first great need being to start the breathing.. After recovering consciousness, the victim should be made to lie perfectly quiet for a long while, as his heart has become greatly weakened. A sudden effort might mean a relapse, and rt is extremely difficult to save a victim if this occurs.
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King Country Chronicle, Volume VIII, Issue 731, 19 December 1914, Page 7
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607VICTIM OF ELECTRICAL SHOCK. King Country Chronicle, Volume VIII, Issue 731, 19 December 1914, Page 7
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