Every breath you take

On Friday I went on a First Aid Course and I have to say I actually enjoyed it! This type of course is just a half-day course and by the end of it I should be able to:

State the role of the appointed person
Carry out a primary survey of a casualty
To place an unconscious casualty into the recovery position
Carry out effective rescue breathing to current Resuscitation Council guidelines
Carry out effective CPR to current Resuscitation Council guidelines
Recognise and deal with Minor & major cases of bleeding
To recognise and treat a patient suffering from medical shock

And do you know what? I think I could do all of those things. I'd previously done the same course in 2001, and the qualification lasts for 3 years, but I don't think I learnt as much then as I did this time. Obviously the basics were the same but it was the teaching style that differed. Where as then I was taught in a quite rigid style by a middle-aged woman just going through the motions, this time I was taught by a firefighter/paramedic who was in his late 20s. He was able to use real life situations to great effect when going through the course which aided in my learning. Hey some of the stories were very funny, although I'm not sure I can repeat them.

It feels good to think that I could help someone if they needed it. Obviously I'd always call for an ambulance first but it's nice to feel like I could actually do something.