Taking the Fear out of First Aid on Glasgow’s Buchanan Street

A new campaign has launched across Scotland, urging people to gain awareness on first aid and to not be afraid to enact it.

Transcript

00:00So we're in Buchanan Street today with St Andrew's first aid and we're taking the fear out of first aid.

00:06It's that way so many Scottish people actually have first aid training, but they're too scared to put it to use.

00:12They're scared that maybe they'll make the situation worse, maybe they've not got the right training,

00:16but what we're trying to see is by doing nothing, that's probably the worst thing you could do.

00:21It's really important that bystanders are willing to help in some of the most common first aid emergencies.

00:28Remembering that those bystanders could be a member of your family very commonly.

00:32So for example, a cardiac arrest or somebody choking.

00:35There are tragic cases we read about every year where people didn't know what to do or they didn't want to step in

00:42and friends or family died because waiting for an ambulance and those circumstances can just take too long.

00:49Today we have a stall with a mysterious box in the box as a whole and we're asking people to put their hand in.

00:57Now we're getting lots of scared reactions, but inside the box there's actually nothing inside.

01:02But what we're trying to see is even though it might seem scary, take that step, take action, put your hand in the box

01:08because actually there's nothing really to be scared about.

01:10So the best thing to do obviously is to get first aid training.

01:14But in spite of that, today's campaign is really about those cases where people do have that training

01:22but they're still reluctant or they're hesitant to step in and use that.

01:27And there's lots of reasons why that might be.

01:30People are afraid of failing or doing it wrong.

01:34Maybe they're afraid of injuring somebody if you're performing CPR.

01:37Or maybe, you know, commonly you'll hear the urban myth that people will be sued.

01:43And the answers to those are quite simple.

01:46But people maybe don't realise that or they believe the myths.

01:50Across Scotland, 9 out of 10 Scots would agree that first aid is so important.

01:55But yet 7% each year are too scared to take the action.

01:58And out of over 3,000 cardiac arrests that happen outside hospitals each year,

02:04that's a risk of 200 people that might not make it because those Scots didn't take action.

02:09So again, we're really here to say the worst thing you could do is nothing.

02:12If you see someone that needs help, really be brave, put that brave face on and get involved and help them.

02:19So for example, nobody has ever been sued as a good Samaritan in the United Kingdom.

02:25Ever. Total myth.

02:27And yes, it is true that you could injure somebody, you could, you know, break ribs performing CPR.

02:36But that only matters if the person's heart is still beating.

02:39They're not probably going to complain that much.

02:42If they're very sore but they're still alive, they'll be happy.

02:46So the campaign is all about getting people to overcome those fears

02:52and be ready and willing to help in an emergency.

02:57It's about not being afraid of first aid.