Red Cross First Aid and CPR Training Produces a Real Life Hero

In early November, 2013, tacogirl.com sponsored my attendance in the Red Cross First Aid and CPR Training session to be held at Banana Beach.  Bandage International conducted the two day training class.   I can honestly say that Darryl’s class was very well paced and he is clearly passionate about saving lives. There were about 25 people in the class, and over half of them were from Victoria House and South.  All the members of the South Ambergris Caye Neighborhood watch, employees of Victoria House and Belize Water Consolidated, as well as other properties and residents of “the South Side”.  I must say, I was quite proud of our group.   Here’s the Course Schedule Darryl gets started.   I took a few notes.  It’s been a few months since I reviewed my notes from the morning’s classroom training, but I find them useful…if not a bit telling. “*Ice on snake bite and splint” Literally, my notes have the above sentence with the underline and the asterisk. There were a lot of great practical examples, and this anagram to help you remember what to do when you come upon a victim of some sort of incident.  You should ask the victim for a “S.A.M.P.L.E.” S: Signs and symptoms A: Allegeries M: Medications P: Past medical history L: What was their last meal and when was it? E: Events prior to the incident Then there is the “Pain Assessment” anagram.  This one I find of personal importance as I tend to break bones and fall down a lot. Gravity effects me differently, I think. P: Provokes, what makes it worse Q: Quality of the pain – is it sharp? dull ache? R: Radiation – does the pain move? S: Severity – on a scale of 1 – 10, 10 being the worst pain they have ever felt in their lives T: Time – when did it start.         After lunch, we went into another area of the restaurant to learn and practice CPR.  It’s not the same as it was when I was first taught.  You no longer breathe for the person.  Just keep their heart pumping.  I don’t remember the shocking statistics on saving a life via CPR, but what I do remember is this:  you’ve got like zero time to start, so just start and keep going.  Do the best you can. On day two was more of a ‘hands on” practical.  The Bandage International Team used real world demonstrations to put our newly learned skills into practice. Before we all said goodbye, South Ambergris Caye Neighborhood Watch Patrolman Coy was recognized for his heroic actions in saving his nephews life.  Officer Coy had completed Bandage International’s First Aid and CPR Course on a Thursday when two days later his nephew fell in a pool and lost consciousness. As a direct result of the training he had received just days before, Coy was able to save his nephews life.   Both the child and the hero received gifts and applause from the Bandage International Team. The entire class UPDATE: I caught a ride home from town a few days ago with “Marlon” pictures above.  In his soft, underspoken voice he told me the story of having saved a child from choking on a marble just a week after completing this training.   Marlon it seems, is quite the hero.  A Press Session is being held on Monday, January 21 at Victoria House to honor his actions.  After he told me his story, I knew it needed to be shared.  This is why the Red Cross is so important for Belize.  It really does help save lives. I had walked to town with my dog and friend Anna, and as we began to walk home, Marlon happened upon us by the Tropic Air terminal and offered us a lift.  We had traveled a while when Marlon casually tells me he “used the training we went to”.  I asked him how.  He tells me that he lives in the San Mateo area and he was home when he heard some screaming and a fuss.  He jumped in the water and swam across the lagoon to see what was happening.  He discovered that a small child was choking on a marble.  Marlon administered CPR, and assessed the childs condition.  The child was turning blue.  Marlon continued CPR until he could dislodge the marble.  He then took the child on a dory, and crossed the lagoon.  In order to cross the bridge, Marlon put the child over his shoulder and carried him until a taxi could be found to get the child to the doctor.  The child is alive and well. Marlon completed the CPR/First Aid training just one week prior to this incident. Marlon is a hero.  For real, for real.