Being first on the scene of an accident – experiences of ‘doing’ prehospital emergency care

Abstract

Prehospital emergency care includes the care and treatment of patients prior to them reaching hospital. This is generally a field for the ambulance services, but in many cases firemen or police can be the ones to provide the first responses. The aim of this study was to describe and understand experiences of being the first responder on the scene of an accident, as described by policemen, firemen and ambulance staff. A lifeworld perspective was used in four different traumatic situations from southern Sweden. The data consisted of 13 unstructured interviews with first responders. The phenomenological analysis showed that experiences of being the first responder on the scene of an accident is expectations of doing a systematic course of action, dressed in the role of a hero, and at the same time being genuine in an interpersonal encounter. This entails a continuous movement between 'being' and 'doing'. It is not a question of either - or, instead everything is to be understood in relation to each other at the same time. Five constituents further described the variations of the phenomenon; a feeling of security in the uncertainty, a distanced closeness to the injured person, one moment in an eternity, cross-border cooperation within distinct borders and a need to make the implicit explicit. This finding highlights the importance of using policemen and firemen in doing life support measures while waiting for the ambulance staff, and would in turn increase the importance of the relationship between the different professionals on the scene of an accident.

Caring assessment in the Swedish ambulance services relieves suffering and enables safe decisions

“…In such situations the patients' lifeworlds can be forgotten. As Elmqvist et al (2009) note, care in acute contexts can take place either with or without patient participation, and with or without recognition of each patient's lifeworld. In their study, they found that the two different perspectives formed a continuous movement between 'doing and being', understood as doing a systematic course of action and at the same time being genuine in an interpersonal encounter.…”

Studi Fenomenologi: Pengalaman Petugas Kepolisian Dalam Memberikan Tindakan Pertolongan Pertama Korban Kecelakaan Lalu Lintas

“…Prehospital care ini diberikan kepada korban sebelum korban kecelakaan lalu lintas sampai di rumah sakit. 5 Pemberian pertolongan prehospital care secara tepat dapat menurunkan risiko kematian akibat trauma. 6 Di Indonesia, terdapat jutaan jumlah pasien gawat darurat akibat kecelakaan yang meninggal dunia.…”

“…Pertolongan secara cepat dan tepat terhadap korban kecelakaan lalu lintas terutama dengan kondisi kegawatan sangat dibutuhkan, karena hal tersebut dapat mencegah keparahan kondisi korban. 5 Tentunya, pertolongan secara cepat dan tepat juga dilakukan oleh seorang yang berkompeten, dalam hal ini petugas medis. Namun, fenomena yang dapat diamati di masyarakat ketika sebuah kecelakaan lalu lintas terjadi, maka yang memberikan pertolongan pertama (first responder) adalah sebagian besar bukan petugas medis, akan tetapi orang awam yang berada di sekitar lokasi kejadian.…”

Burnout and Association with Psychosocial Work Environment among Swedish Firefighters

“…In Arnetz's study (2012), firefighters were the healthiest profession in several respects, particularly in relation to police officers who reported more negative consequences from their work-related stress. Because comparable professions have differences in outcomes such as fatigue symptoms and cynicism (Backteman-Erlanson et al, 2013;Elmqvist, Brunt, Fridlund, & Ekebergh, 2010), it would be interesting for future studies to explore the firefighters' context and possible health-protecting environment. For example, there are studies that support the hypothesis that the social position and the social support that individuals receive from their work environment and society is an important aspect for maintaining health (Karasek & Theorell, 1992;Stansfeld & Candy, 2006).…”