About Life Support

When we asked friends and other members of the community about Life Support, they were often unaware of the difference between Life Support and First Aid.

There is a critical difference between the two, despite both courses covering some similar topics. The most important topic in Life Support is CPR, a subject which is not covered in a First Aid course.

Essentially, First Aid is about providing initial care to somebody who is ill or has an injury; in minor cases it may not be necessary for trained medical personnel to attend the scene. However, Life Support is about keeping a person alive who might otherwise die, and in nearly all circumstances, medical personnel should be consulted.

In fact, Life Support is accurately described by the French for the term - “Aide médicale urgente”, meaning 'Emergency Medical Assistance'. It therefore covers techniques essential to keep someone alive as opposed to treatment of minor injuries.

Bonuses! We asked Mr. Alex Hieatt (a surgical registrar) about the difference between Life Support and First Aid (take a look at the interview transcript), as well as Fleur Medcroft (her interview transcript).

Citations:	Wikipedia. (2007). Basic life support. Retrieved April 2, 2007, from Wikipedia Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_life_support
	Wikipedia. (2007). First aid. Retrieved April 2, 2007, from Wikipedia Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_aid