Safety of the helper
Traffic, fire, electricity, collapse or aggression are reasons to keep your distance and call. Disposable gloves protect you from contact with blood.
Topics
Topics and situations
Situations here are grouped by what a bystander faces in the first minutes: first work out whether it is safe to approach and what has happened, then help a person who is not responding, stop heavy bleeding, or protect someone from a burn, heat or cold. Each card gives the general direction of action and a link to the section where the topic is covered in more detail. No card replaces a call to 112 or your local emergency number, or practice on a course.
In almost any situation the order is the same: safety, the call, checking breathing and caring for the person until the crew arrives. The rest is detail best practised with your hands.
How this section works: we include a situation if any adult without medical training might face it, and we describe it in general terms — without diagnoses, medicines or invasive techniques. The cards lead to sections where the topic is explained in more detail.
Assess the situation
The first seconds are spent not on action but on understanding what is happening and making sure you do not become a second casualty.
Calling an ambulance
In Russia 112 reaches all emergency services and 103 is the ambulance from a mobile; elsewhere use your local number. The call handler needs the address, what happened, how many are hurt and whether they respond.
Response and breathing
Speak to them, touch their shoulder, look at the chest. These simple observations decide what to do next and what to say on the phone.
Unresponsive and not breathing
If a person does not respond, every minute until the crew arrives matters — for both breathing and circulation.
No normal breathing
Call an ambulance and start CPR: chest compressions and, if you are trained, rescue breaths. The call handler can guide you over the phone.
Automated external defibrillator
If there is one nearby, bring it and switch it on: the device tells you by voice what to do. Ask people around you to look for one in the building.
Breathing but not responding
The person is turned into the recovery position so the airway stays open, and their breathing is watched constantly.
An adult is choking
If the person can cough, let them cough. If they cannot speak or breathe, call 112 or your local emergency number and act as you were taught on your course.
Injuries and bleeding
Heavy bleeding becomes dangerous quickly, so the key is to stay calm and act with gloved hands.
Heavy bleeding
Press firmly on the wound with a sterile pad or clean cloth and hold, then apply a dressing. Leave more complex techniques to those trained in them.
A fall and a suspected injury
Do not move the person unless necessary: extra movement can cause harm. The exception is an immediate danger at the scene, such as fire.
Minor cuts and grazes
Clean hands or gloves, rinse with clean water, a sterile dressing. If the wound is deep, dirty or will not stop bleeding, a doctor is needed.
Cold, heat, burns
Temperature injuries are often “treated” with folk remedies that only cause harm. Simple, calm actions are what help here.
Burn
Cool under cool running water for about 20 minutes. Ice, oil and other “home remedies” are not used.
Overheating
Move the person into shade or a cool room, loosen tight clothing and fan them. Confusion or loss of consciousness means calling 112 or your local number at once.
Hypothermia
Move them somewhere warm, remove wet clothing and wrap them in something dry and warm. Rewarm gradually, without hot water or rubbing.
Frostbite
Do not rub the affected area with snow or warm it by a fire. Protect it from the cold with a dry dressing and get medical help as soon as possible.
Article catalogue for English-speaking readers
This is where standalone first-aid articles for English-speaking readers will appear. They are written separately for this language version, take into account that emergency numbers and first-aid rules differ by country, and do not repeat the materials of other language versions.
- A practical guide to Call of Duty news, guides and game resources: Player Experience
How to follow Call of Duty news, use guides and resources wisely, understand progression and seasons, and spot the risks of account sharing and boosting.
- GTA 6 Money Systems and Economy Explained: Practical Guide
A cautious guide to GTA 6 money: what Rockstar has confirmed, what earlier GTA games suggest, and how to judge economy claims before the November 2026 launch.
- Escape from Tarkov: Raid Planning And Equipment Priorities — Practical Guide
Field notes on Escape from Tarkov raid planning: setting a goal, choosing gear you can afford to lose, extracting safely, and what to check before any service.
- Aion 2 collections: What New Players Should Know
New to Aion 2? A plain guide to collection-style goals, how to track them in game, which details to verify in patch notes, and how to stay within the rules.
Topics the editors are planning
- Knowing your local emergency number when you travel abroad
- Staying calm on the phone with the emergency call handler
- Hot weather and older neighbours: simple ways to check in
- How to reassure an injured person while help is on the way
Editorial rules
- Articles in this catalogue are written separately for each language version and are not translations.
- Some articles link to third-party websites, including gaming services; we do not control their content, prices or terms.
- We do not publish advertising for courses, first-aid kits or clinics, rankings, prices or reviews.
Related sections
- Be prepared
How to prepare in advance: an in-person course, a home first-aid kit without medicines, and emergency numbers at hand.
- Methods
Adult CPR, the recovery position, dressings and cooling a burn, in general terms and never as a replacement for a course.
- Glossary
Words you hear on courses and from the emergency call handler: response, breathing, compressions, defibrillator, dressing.
Sources
- Order of the Russian Ministry of Health No. 220n of 3 May 2024
- European Resuscitation Council — Guidelines 2021
Information was checked as of the preparation date. First-aid rules and resuscitation guidelines are revised from time to time, so rely on the documents currently in force where you live and on what your in-person course instructor taught you.