First Aid...and other news
FirstAidTraining
Nightmare: John is in the galley preparing lunch while we are underway, slicing a fresh whole wheat loaf when the boat lurches from a gust of wind. The knife is jerked out of his hand, flies into the air and lands in the meat of his thigh. Blood spurts.
Nightmare: We have a long day sailing in big wind that ends with an all hands on deck to push through a front that brings us to near exhaustion. Finally at anchor, I collapse grabbing my chest, crashing to the salon floor, knocking my head on the edge of the table. I'm unconscious.
As we ruminated about these nightmares, it was clear that we are ill equipped to handle a medical emergency on the water. It's been 35 years since John assisted EMTs, riding shotgun in ambulances in Queens and I vaguely remember taking a CPR course 20 years ago. We needed the skills and knowledge to handle the first moments of any medical emergency we might encounter, and, as we all know, procedures have improved since 1975.
So off we went to the American Red Cross to take their seven hour Adult First Aid/CPR/AED course. We are now prepared to handle those first crucial minutes when something goes seriously wrong medically. Simple stuff, but important stuff. We've also ordered, in addition to our already well stocked first aide kit, an automatic external defibrillator (AED), which have learned to use.
In addition, we'll be purchasing mariner emergency evacuation insurance. We're not getting any younger, so we might as well be prepared. My mom and Ruth Payne, my girl scout leaders for many years, would be right proud!
In other news, Dolce Vento repairs are underway again. The drive shaft part that had to be fabricated by a company in New Zealand arrived two days ago so, with luck, we may have her back in the water in a couple of weeks. Our closet, aka boat locker, at the apartment is full of stuff to be loaded, the sails and other canvas are ready to be installed, the bottom is painted and the sun is shining a bit, so stay tuned.