In this interview with VINCENT KURAUN, the Public Education Officer, Federal Road Safety Corps, Ogun State sector command, Chief Route Commander Florence Okpe, spoke on issues regarding first aid administration in emergency situations, the issue of safety on the road among other issues.
HOW do you think passers-by should respond to victims of traumatic incidents, such as road accidents?
First, there should be calm whenever a crash occurs. The people around the scene should be calm and shouldn’t panic over the situation.
Secondly, they should encourage the victims; words of encouragement can get the victims to feel relaxed. At times, at the scene of a crash, you hear people saying things like ‘I don’t think they are going to survive this and that,’ this is very dangerous. Statements like these can trigger fear in the victims. Such statements are not good for casualties in a crash scene. So, it is better to give them words of encouragement in order for them to relax.
Thirdly, there should be crowd control in order for rescue operatives to carry out their job effectively.
Is it right for individuals to use their vehicles to convey accident victims to the hospitals?
Most times, it is allowed for anyone to use their private vehicles to take crash victims to the hospital. When we talk about safety, it is a collective responsibility and one needs to do everything in order to ensure safety or to save a life. We can use both private and commercial vehicles to save lives by taking crash victims to nearby hospitals for them to receive medical attention and secondly, we have a free toll number, 122. When you put a call through, a call centre will receive the call and contact the nearest command to respond immediately.
I am aware that some vehicles have first aid kits in them. Do you think there should be a policy mandating all private and public vehicles on the road to have first aid kits?
It is advisable to have first aid kits in our vehicles. As I said earlier, we are all working towards safety, particularly in cases where you run into an accident scene and there are victims with fractures and dislocation who will be in need of certain things. When you have a first aid kit in your vehicle, you can easily bring out instruments like scissors to cut out a clothing material in order to tie the affected parts of the body to prevent it from dangling or blood loss.
So, having a first aid kit is advisable. First aid is the first treatment given to crash casualty before they are being taken to hospital for further medical attention. It is very important but we cannot mandate them, we can only advise.
Should drivers be trained on the importance of first aid and how to administer when obtaining a driver’s licence?
As I said earlier on, it is advisable for drivers to be trained. There is the Red Cross and its officials are professionals in the aspect of first aid administration; they even trained us. So, if there is any driver that needs such training, he can do that on his own. Again, it is not mandatory but it is advisable that everyone acquires this special knowledge.
Secondly, we have these people called community responders. They are everywhere to aid rescue operations and oftentimes, they are the ones who will call the agency informing us of a crash incident to aid quick response. The FRSC empowered them for that. So, if any driver feels they need to acquire first aid skills, they can contact the Red Cross for such training.
Does the FRSC have a department where its officers are trained on how to handle health-related emergencies including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)?
We have a department that trains staff members on a weekly basis, specifically every Wednesday. It’s a capacity building drive and officers get this period training and we equally invite other organisations like the Red Cross to train our staff on how to handle casualties on the road especially during rescue operations.
How well is FRSC enforcing the policy that forbids drunk driving?
The enforcement is well carried out. Before proper enforcement itself, there was an advocacy that we carried out in churches, mosques and market places to enlighten motorists about the danger of drunk driving. We told them it is not good to drink and drive and if at all you must drive, you should not drink and vice versa. We also engaged people in town hall meetings under what we call Town Hall Engagement. We go around the environment to enlighten people on the dangers of drunk driving.
We use social media as well. So, generally, this enforcement is well carried out and we enforce this using a tool called breathalyser with which we use to determine if anyone is driving under the influence of alcohol. The machine also allows you to know the percentage of alcohol in the person’s system.
On what other issue would you advise the public on regarding the issue of safety?
FRSC is just a lead agency on safety matters. The public should know that safety is a collective measure and we all must do our best to promote safety and save lives. Therefore, we should join hands together to ensure lives and properties are saved.
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