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First aid without 112

martin1ws

Active Member
Time of past OR future Camino
2018; (2020); 2021; 2022; 2023
What should I do if I find someone who needs help (cannot go on) and I cannot call 112 (no connectivity)?

If we are 2 pilgrims, one helps and one goes on to find/call help.

And if I am on my own?
* Without breathing: breath donation and hoping that someone comes to find/call help.
* heatstroke: sharing water, try to find / build shadow and go on to find help (leave him / her alone)???

How would you decide when to stay and when to go on to find help (if you are only one person to help)?
 
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I cannot search for "first aid" because "The search could not be completed because the search keywords were too short, too long, or too common."
Maybe the too-short option is a little bit too strict.
 
Have you done a First Aid course? Always worthwhile.

Going for help is always a tricky decision. I initially learnt First Aid in a winter mountain environment. That has it’s challenges. Assisting the patient, keeping them warm etc whilst someone goes for help (assuming no communications). Sending someone alone to find help is those situations can also be dangerous, sending 2 is better.

But most Caminos are not a ‘dangerous’ environment, depending of course on location and time of year...

Every situation will be different. How long will it take to reach help? How badly does the patients need help? Is it life threatening?

I’m sure @davebugg will have some solid expert input to these questions.

I make sure I have a basic first aid kit with me (+ spare electrolytes). Never run too low on water, and have a working mobile phone. This year we also learnt some basic Spanish that would assist in emergencies. Calling for help, giving our location etc.
 
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
If you are on a popular route, like the Frances, someone will usually come by frequently. They may have a phone to call 112.

Depending on route, you are usually within a reasonable walk of a cafe / bar.

These concerns can all be mitigated or obviated by:
  1. Getting medically checked over BEFORE your Camiño, when you are home.
  2. Learning basic first-aid, including CPR.
  3. Carrying basic medical supplies, customized to your personal needs.
  4. Learning basic Spanish so you can summon help or ask for a taxi.
  5. Having even a basic, burner phone that will work to summon help.
Hope this helps.
 
Last edited:
Thank you for your tips.

I have a smartphone and want to take it with me.
I thought of areas that are far off... maybe on the Camino Aragonés or the Camino de Invierno where it could take some time until someone else comes and where there is maybe no net / no mobile connectivity.
 
How would you decide when to stay and when to go on to find help (if you are only one person to help)?
The two situations you outline are good illustrations of the two main cases: stay or go. In the first case (no breathing), you intervene immediately and since the situation is both unstable and life-threatening, you would stay. Send the first bystander for help. Hopefully, someone has a different phone network and better connectivity, because 112 for transport to the nearest A&E is still necessary. In the second case (heat), once you have provided water and a cooler environment, they are relatively stable, and you could go yourself.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
If you are completely off the beaten track on a route with no regular pilgrims and you have a non breathing casualty, your options are pretty limited. Has the casualty got a pulse? No, then they are dead. Do nothing except mark the spot and go find a way to contact the local constabulary.

If they have a pulse it gets more complicated, but if they had say a heart attack, your chances of reviving them are pretty slim without an AED and medical assistance, so you can try breathing for them, but if they fail to come around within say 20-30 mins, you will have to make a decision whether to continue or allow nature to take it's course. You can not provide CPR indefinitely. People talk about giving CPR for an hour, but that is like running a marathon. If you have no signal or way of alerting emergency services, that person is unlikely to survive.

Unconscious, but breathing, put them in the recovery position, give them some shade and try and find help or call for help. If you were strong enough you could try carrying them to somewhere more accessible, or where you are more likely to find help, such as a road, but for safety, I would put them in the recovery position. Also have a quick look through their stuff, find out if they have any tablets or insulin. That info will be of use to the emergency services.

This situation can be planned for, but in reality it is something that can only be dealt with in the situation. Use common sense if you ever come across this sort of issue. First aid training is also useful, advanced training if you have it can be really useful too, but it's mostly only undertaken if you were training as an Expedition Leader or Mountain Guide, at which point having a ticket in Expedition Medicine is useful.

As Tincatinker suggests, trying to call 112 is your primary goal, no matter what. But even if you do get through and arrange help, if you are half way across the Pyrenees or even at the Cruz de Ferro, it isn't going to get there in 5 mins. You need to keep your casualty alive until it does get there, if you can. In the UK they will guide you through how to do that, but I don't know if the same would happen abroad. If they tell you they have sent a helicopter (and you are able to) then get any rucksacks and bright clothes and make a visual marker to help them locate you. Which Three Words App should be used if you have it.

Sorry, no easy suggestions on this topic. It was covered on a work related first aid course I did and it's a complicated subject. My work is mostly remote and often solo, so being able to deal with any problems I or the team I operate in might encounter, is really important. On some Camino routes, the same might apply. But it is something to learn through training.

Praemonitus praemunitus.
 
I have taken a Red Cross first aid course, and forgotten most of it. In addition to my iphone, which is equiped with the AlertCops app. I carry an emergency beacon, which can send an emergency message to a satellite monitoring centre, where they contact the local authorities wherever I am to say that I have announced an emergency and give my location. I would use AlertCops first, and only the emergency beacon if there was no reply. But I have no confidence that I could manage a medical emergency, unless someone on the AlertCops monitoring service could speak English and talk me through my response. I would do my best and wait for someone who knew what they were doing to show up.
 
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In Australia, the first aid mnenomic is DRSABCD (DRS ABCD or DoctorS ABCD if you like).
  • D - check for danger to yourself and the person needing assistance. Remove any danger. If it isn't possible to do that, it may not be practical or possible to assist.
  • R - check if the person has a response, if so, ensure they know you are there by touching a hand or shoulder and ask them if they need help then keep talking to them. You may need to yell!
  • S - send for help, or get someone to do that.
    • if you are alone, there is a fine balance here, but I would proceed down this checklist rather than leaving the person unassisted. If they need CPR, that will save their life, and there is always the prospect that someone will arrive to assist. If you leave them, they may only have minutes before irreversible damage and then death.
  • A - check the Airway is clear if the person is unconscious and unresponsive
    • at this stage, if a person is conscious, responsive and breathing then assess how to treat any injuries, even if that just means stopping external bleeding.
  • B - check for normal breathing
    • if the person is unconscious and breathing, put them into the recovery position
  • C - start CPR on any adult who is not breathing or a child not breathing normally
  • D - defibrillator - use it when one arrives.
    • be prepared to continue CPR until an ambulance arrives.
The OP raised the prospect of not being able to contact the emergency number, 112. Even if you don't have a connection to your own service provided, 112 calls can be made on any network. Just make sure you turn off flight mode if you have turned it on for some reason.
* heatstroke: sharing water, try to find / build shadow and go on to find help (leave him / her alone)???
NO. This is not an appropriate first aid treatment for heatstroke. Cool the person down, but they shouldn't be provided with water to drink. There is a risk they will vomit or choke.
Hopefully, someone has a different phone network and better connectivity, because 112 for transport to the nearest A&E is still necessary.
Any available carrier will provide access for 112 calls if you cannot connect to your own service provider.
 

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