More than 100 people, including police personnel, traffic police, Red Cross volunteers, NCC students, home guards and firefighters, received practical first-aid training at Ramaiah Memorial Hospital in Bengaluru to improve emergency assistance during the first 10 minutes after a road accident.
The programme, organised on the occasion of World Trauma Day, focused on the importance of what organisers called the “Platinum 10 Minutes” — the period immediately after an injury when prompt assistance can play an important role in saving a life. The hospital said the training was designed around the reality that people at the accident site may need to help before an ambulance or medical team arrives.
The programme was organised under the hospital’s ‘Be First’ initiative. Participants were trained to understand the nature and causes of injuries and to provide immediate assistance at crash sites. The practical sessions covered controlling severe bleeding, splinting and bandaging, managing head injuries, and moving injured people safely and quickly.
The training also included guidance on removing helmets safely from injured motorcyclists. Helmet removal after a crash can require care, particularly when a person may have sustained a head or neck injury. The session therefore addressed the need to move an injured person in a manner intended to reduce further harm while waiting for professional medical support.
The participation of police and traffic police personnel, civil defence-linked staff, home guards and firefighters brought together groups that are likely to be present or respond during road emergencies. Red Cross volunteers and NCC students also attended, expanding the training beyond formal emergency-response agencies to community and volunteer networks.
P.R.S. Chetan, an officer from the Civil Defence section of the office of the Director General of Police, Rajesh M.S., secretary of the Indian Red Cross Society, and Dr Madan S. Gaikwad, chief operating officer of Ramaiah Memorial Hospital, were among those present. Experts from the hospital also participated in the programme.
Dr Aruna C. Ramesh, head of the hospital’s emergency medical department, coordinated the training. The hospital said the initiative was intended to help first responders provide timely assistance at accident locations until ambulance services or doctors reach the injured person.
