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Anticipating the worst

By Brad Smith
September 25, 2009 at 1:36 pm

I’m on first aid duty this weekend. I’m off to a Grass track racing event. “Why are you anticipating the worst?” I hear you say. That’s easy to answer. My colleagues had a whopping 28 casualties to deal with last time out. If this weekend is like the last one, I’m in for a busy weekend!

There’s a lot of times you should anticipate the worst happening, like being on top of a mountain without a first aid kit, or just getting injured when you’re going fell walking (like I mentioned I was hoping not to when I last blogged.)

Unfortunately, I did get injured at the top of a mountain – in my case, the highest point in England – Scafell Pike. And guess what? I’d forgetten to pack my first aid kit too. What a fool. I’m blaming it on the shock of having a sunny day, prime for walking. I was so eager to get out I rushed out of my tent without packing the most important of items.

What did I do to get hurt? I was balanced on two boulders just below the summit. Unfortunately I lost my footing and fell forwards, impacting my knee. An ice pack and a compression bandage would have helped, but I had to struggle down without. Thankfully Dad didn’t have to carry me, much to his relief. I certainly paid the price for my mistake though, I was in quite a bit of pain that night and a good few days after. Got a great bruise though.

The moral of the story? Always anticipate the worst and have a first aid kit on hand. Bring on those casualties..

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Tags: event first aid, First aid, first aid duties, first aid training, walking injuries

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