Emergency: call for help

Posted on 17 December 2013

Dr Brian Gutuza, head of the emergency centre at Mediclinic Cape Town, shares some tips on how to handle an emergency and, most importantly, how to teach your children what an emergency is and when to call for help.

If there’s been an emergency at home, how do I call an ambulance?

•    Call ER24 on 084 124 immediately. The contact response team will identify the emergency and alert the correct emergency service, i.e. the fire brigade, ambulance, traffic department, etc.
•    Stay calm and give them as much information as you can. You’ll need to provide the location of the accident – the street name and number, plus any possible landmarks. They’ll also need your name and telephone number, so they can call back if the line gets disrupted.
•    Be prepared to describe the victims’ injuries and details of what happened – are there any hazardous materials on the scene, is the patient unconscious, etc.
•    Don’t put the phone down; the emergency call taker will hang up first.

Here are some common reasons for calling an ambulance

•    If someone has been injured in a road accident (for example, a car occupant, pedestrian, cyclist).
•    Serious injuries at home that affect the brain, spin, chest and abdomen, as well as leg injuries that prevent the victim from getting up – for example, falling out of a tree or down the stairs.
•    Severe breathing problems and chest pain that doesn’t go away after five minutes.
•    Any severe pain that doesn’t go away after taking painkillers.
•    Persistent vomiting or diarrhea that makes the person weak and sleepy.
•    Sudden loss of ability to use one or both legs.
•    Accidental or deliberate overdose of medication, or suspected poisoning with chemicals.
•    Severe burns involving the face, or any part of the body where the burn area is larger than the area of your face. If someone has been exposed to excessive amounts of smoke in a fire and is now coughing or short of breath that may be very serious and they should get to a hospital immediately.
•    Near drowning (if someone has been rescued from the water and needed to be revived or is coughing severely).

You don’t need to call an ambulance if the person is close to a hospital or doctor and can go there easily and safely.

How do I teach my children how to call for help?

1. How to call for help

Teach your children the number for ER24 – 084 124 – they should be able to recite it like their home number. Put this number next to your landline, save it onto your cellphone or stick it onto the fridge; any place where they can easily find it.

2. When to call for help

Children must never phone the emergency services as a joke. Here are a few good questions to ask them:
•    Should you call if a fire starts in the house? Yes.
•    What do you do if someone gets very sick, can’t speak or isn’t able to breathe? Call 084 124.
•    What do you do if someone falls over or faints? Call 084 124.
•    Should you call if someone falls off the roof? Yes.?

Your child also needs to understand what isn’t an emergency. For example:
•    You’ve skinned your knee or have a splinter in your finger.
•    You’ve lost your cat.
•    A friend dares you to call.

3. Practise makes perfect

Practise with your children so know how to react in an emergency. And keep asking them when they should call 084 124 until they’re confident enough to phone for help when you can’t.

The information provided in this article was correct at the time of publishing. At Mediclinic we endeavour to provide our patients and readers with accurate and reliable information, which is why we continually review and update our content. However, due to the dynamic nature of clinical information and medicine, some information may from time to time become outdated prior to revision.