Southern Cross First Aid

Southern Cross First Aid Southern Cross First Aid skills Training is owned and operated by the trainers that deliver the courses.

Developing your First Aid knowledge and skills with Southern Cross First Aid Skills Training will provide you with the confidence to apply basic life support and stabilise an injured or ill person until medical aid is available All trainers have extensive experience in providing first aid in a variety of workplaces and apply that knowledge to your work environment. Southern Cross First Aid aims to provide an exceptional learning experience in a relaxed format both at our training room or onsite at your workplace.

05/10/2021

Southern Cross First Aid now has two training locations:

38 Ferry Street
Nerang
Qld 4211
(The Red Cross building)

&

139 Minjungbal Drive
Tweed Heads South
NSW 2486.

Southern Cross First Aid also does 'On Site' courses at your business/workplace from Coolangatta to Brisbane.

Call Denese on 0466 015 373 for details and bookings.

13/07/2021

There were three fish in a bowl. One fish jumped out of the bowl, landed on the table, and died. One of the remaining fish said to the other, “He always did have a dry sense of humour.” ~ Mark Parisi.

Recently, I did an in house first aid course with a group of four. The participants filed into the lunchroom and took their seats.

Introductions were made; Melissa, Wayne, Lily, and Ian. When Ian introduced himself, Melissa said, “We wind Ian up.”

Ian concurred, “Yes, I spend most of my life wound up.”

I asked, “Do you pop open and pirouette like a ballerina in a musical jewellery box?”

Ian replied, “I can't dance.”

Sincerely with a Smile,
Trainer/Assessor
Kathie xoxo.

06/07/2021

My neighbour's house burnt down. I asked, “What happened?”
My neighbour replied, “There was a spider. It's gone now.” ~ Meme.

During first aid courses, I discuss the procedure to follow if an insect crawls into someone's ear. As tempting as it would be to grab a pair of tweezers and dig the bu**er out, that is fraught with danger. Although annoying and possibly painful, the Australian Resuscitation Council recommends the patient be taken to a doctor.

Recently after discussing best practice with a small group, one gentleman shared a story:

“Back when I was a young buck, I had luxurious long hair. One night, I went to bed and was woken up by an insect crawling into my ear. It was very uncomfortable.

It was dark. I figured that bugs are attracted to light. I went into the bathroom, stood in front of the mirror and flicked my lighter. The critter came out.

At the same time, my gorgeous locks went up in flames. The next day, the blokes at work set me up on a hot date with a fire extinguisher.”

Sincerely with a Smile,
Trainer/Assessor
Kathie xoxo.

29/06/2021

A real sign found on an electricity conversion power box after a WHS inspector said the danger signs were not ‘clear enough’:

DANGER: DO NOT TOUCH
Not only will this kill you, it will hurt the whole time you are dying. ~ Elmacanite.

The first D in DRSABCD stands for Danger. A first aider needs to ensure their own safety before attending to an injured person.

I explain to students that for many of us, looking out for ourselves has become instinctive. Most people are able to relate to the idea of self-preservation.

Early on, kids learn that electricity is dangerous, and that water and electricity don't mix. When we were little, our parents or care givers taught us things like not running out on the road...

Stop at the curb. Look to the right. Look to the left. Look to the right again. Then, if the road is clear of traffic, walk straight across the road.

I say to the participants, “Then, when children grow up and become teenagers, they are often told, ‘Go play in the traffic.’”

Sincerely with a Smile,
Trainer/Assesor
Kathie xoxo.

21/06/2021

It's very rare that a defibrillator fails.
But, when it happens, no one is shocked. ~ Make a Meme.

Recently, I attended an onsite CPR course. I had the pleasure of training fourteen gentlemen from a high risk workplace. I could not have previously imagined coming across a more Aussie bunch of blokes.

While I was discussing the use a defibrillator, the application of the pads on a hairy chest came up. I advocated the pads be placed on the chest, regardless of the fur content.

I iterated the Australian Resuscitation Council's policy:

Place the defibrillator pads on the body as per the directions shown on the pads. The defibrillator will tell the operator if an adequate circuit has been established. If the subject's chest is too hairy, the defibrillator will tell the first aider to remove the pads and replace them.

At this point, I encourage the operator to ‘rip' the pad or pads off the casualty’s chest, affecting a ‘waxing’ process. I demonstrate plucking the hair from the pads, and then reapplying them to the cleared skin.

Steve, who was sitting at the other end of the table, with the top buttons of his shirt open, proudly displaying a bear like pelt, made the comment, “You'd never get the pads back on me.”

Sincerely with a Smile,
Trainer/Assessor
Kathie xoxo.

15/06/2021

Tonight, I'm going to help you get laid. I'm giving up my hedonistic ways and dedicating myself to the greater good. ~ Meme.

The other day, I taught a first aid course on the Tweed. One of the participants was a surf lifesaver at Fingal. She was a fit and fabulous forty something.

We were discussing what to do when someone gets a foreign body in their eye. Best practice is to rinse it out with water or saline.

Miss Fingal shared a story:

While on patrol, a man and his son approached her about sand in the eye. For some reason, Miss Fingal was under the impression that it was the child who had the problem.

She dropped down to his level and began to explain what she was going to do. The father interrupted, “I'm the one with sand in my eye.”

Miss Fingal was a little taken aback. She thought, ‘You're a grown man and there's a whole ocean right there.’

Ever the professional, she asked, “Have you tried to wash it out in the water?”

Mr Sandy disembled, “No. I didn't think about that.”

Miss Fingal instructed, “Give it a go. Come back if you still need help.”

Mr Sandy walked off dejected. His son consoling him.

I grinned, nodded, and exclaimed, “Brilliant. He was hitting on you, using his son as his wingman... Epic fail.”

Sincerely with a Smile,
Trainer/Assessor
Kathie xoxo.

08/06/2021

Australian states and territories have in place Good Samaritan legislation to ensure that people who step forward to provide emergency medical assistance are not held legally liable for their actions, provided they acted in good faith. ~ Wikipedia.

With regard to performing CPR or First Aid, a Duty of Care only relates to the workplace, except in the Northern Territories. As a bystander in public, no-one is compelled to assist an injured or ill person. An individual makes a choice, based on ethics, morals, values, and ability.

As part of the First Aid assessment, one of the multiple-choice questions is:

One evening, you are out in Surfers Paradise when a person collapses nearby. You suspect they have taken or misused an illicit drug or substance. What could you do?

a) Leave them be. They should recover after a few minutes.
b) Call an ambulance and follow their advice.
c) Give them some coffee or a kebab to sober them up.
d) Let their friends help them.

The answer is B.

I say to my students. “If you ever see ME out and about, the answer is C.”

Sincerely with a Smile,
Trainer/Assessor
Kathie xoxo.

01/06/2021

I have an EpiPen. My friend gave it to me when he was dying. It seemed very important to him that I have it. ~ Memes Monkey.

During a recent first aid course, I was explaining how to use an EpiPen. As I distributed the training Pens, I made it very clear that there were NO needles in the Pens. Even then, a couple of them looked at me suspiciously.

The EpiPen has a blue top and an orange bottom. The rhyme to help remember which way to hold it is:
Blue to the sky.
Orange to the thigh.

I explained that the blue cap is a lock. I instructed, “Remove the blue lock. Place the orange tip on your outer thigh. Push until it goes ‘click'. Count slowly: 1, 2, 3. Pull it out.”

As I went through this process, Simo, at the top of his voice, exclaimed, “Ouch!”

Sincerely with a Smile,
Trainer/Assessor
Kathie xoxo.

25/05/2021

Frank Burns: The men hate me, don't they?
Radar: Only your guts, sir. ~ MASH

I consider the units of competency for CPR and First Aid as the trunk of a tree. All other units are like branches. For example, Advanced First Aid is not, as the name suggests, more advanced skills, it is applying first aid in a situation where there is more than one casualty. This is known as triage.

The word triage reminds me of the TV series MASH. When all the ambulances and helicopters arrived with wounded soldiers, Hawkeye Pierce and the other doctors would move among the injured to ascertain who needed to go on the operating table, who could wait, and who was dead.

There is also such a thing as reverse triage. This applies in situations where evacuation is required. The people evacuated first, are those most likely to survive, or those least injured.

Recently, when training a group of construction workers in triage, we were discussing the four levels of consciousness. I started with conscious and unconscious and broke it down.

I explained, “One level is conscious capable or alert.” Then I asked, “If I had drunk a bottle of wine, would you want me behind the wheel of a car you are in?”

From the back, Glenn declared, “Depends on how seasoned you are.”

Sincerely with a Smile,
Trainer/Assessor
Kathie xoxo.

P.S. The four levels of consciousness:
1. Conscious capable or alert – normal state of consciousness.
2. Conscious incapable – conscious while not being in control.
3. Unconscious aware – asleep.
4. Unconscious - non-responsive.

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38 Ferry Street
Nerang, QLD
4211

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