The medical specialists who provide Queenslanders with vital care onboard the iconic blue and yellow RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopters are now arming Wide Bay and Burnett community members with the skills needed to potentially save a life, in the midst of an emergency.
LifeFlight Australia’s most senior Critical Care Doctors and Flight Paramedics will educate members of the local community on what they can do to help, during the initial, crucial minutes of a traumatic incident, by bringing First Minutes Matter Trauma Training workshops to the region.
First Minutes Matter Trauma Training is a free community safety education program offered online and in-person by LifeFlight’s experienced aeromedical team.
“It’s a great program that teaches important medical skills for pre-hospital emergencies, while you’re waiting for an ambulance or the RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopter,” said First Minutes Matter Trauma Training Program Manager for LifeFlight and Flight Paramedic, Craig Blick.
“We try to teach and impart the skills of basic life support, so that if you do need to wait for help to arrive and you are in that situation where something happens in front of you, you’re able to act and you can do it calmly and with a level of knowledge and confidence that you’re going to be able to do it safely and the person that you’re helping is going to be able to survive.”
The idea to create First Minutes Matter Trauma Training for the public came from LifeFlight aeromedical crew members, who know patient outcomes are dramatically improved by actions taken in the first minutes after an incident, before emergency crews arrive.
The in-person workshops are already being hailed a huge success, with over 2000 Queenslanders now better equipped to help in the event of an emergency, following the program’s launch in late 2021.
Retired nurse, Jayne Davidson, attended one of the in-person trauma training workshops to brush up on her skills.
Just days later, she found herself using the skills she had learnt from the course, to assist an elderly man who was injured after being pinned under a tree he had been trying to cut down.
“He was in a lot of pain, very distressed and hyperventilating, and I remember when I did the course, one of the things that the instructor really instilled into us was to calm your patient down. Reassure them,” Jayne Davidson said.
“And so we did all the necessary steps and between my husband and I, we were able to help this man.”
The man had suffered injuries to his chest, back and hip as a result of the incident and was airlifted to hospital by RACQ LifeFlight Rescue for further treatment.
“We may not have needed to save his life, but we certainly made a difference to the process of him receiving help, and there were skills that I learned at the course that helped in this way,” Jayne said.
The past-participant is now encouraging others to sign up to the in-person courses.
“I think everybody should sign up to the trauma training. If you can help save someone’s life, or if you could help change the outcome of how someone’s life is going to be in the future, then why not?”
Thanks to Shine Lawyers’ continued partnership, as Founding Partner of the program, the in-person trauma training workshops are able to continue and head to the Wide Bay and Burnett regions.
“Shine Lawyers is proud to continue our partnership with LifeFlight by sponsoring the First Minutes Matter Trauma Training workshops across Queensland,” said Shine Lawyers Chief Operating Officer, Jodie Willey.
“This time around we are extending our reach across the Wide Bay and Burnett regions, from Bundaberg to K’gari, Maryborough and Mount Perry.”
“We’ve been deeply moved by the feedback from attendees like Jayne Davidson, who is a prime example of why the workshops are so vital for us all.”
The small workshops, delivered by LifeFlight’s medical staff, focus on giving students the chance to practice their skills.
“The workshops run for about five hours, and we touch on seven main topics. We teach things from what to do when you are on the scene of an incident, like calling triple zero, and reassuring the patient, to how to treat burns, stop bleeding, choking, strokes and seizures,” said Craig Blick.
“We also use mannequins and a whole lot of other equipment to teach people these really vital and practical skills.”
To register for the in-person First Minutes Matter workshops at – firstminutesmatter.org.au/workshops
WORKSHOP DATES:
- K’gari – 11th of March
- Hervey Bay – 12th of March
- Agnes Waters – 20th of April
- Gin Gin – 21th of April
- Bundaberg – 22nd of April
- Monto – 27th of April
- Mt Perry – 28th of April
- Gayndah – 29th of April
- Biggenden – 20th of May
- Maryborough – 21st of May
- Kingaroy – 14th of June (registrations open soon)
- Wondai – 15th of June (registrations open soon)
- Yarraman – 16th of June
In the free, self-paced, online program LifeFlight Training Academy Medical Director Dr Duncan McAuley shares his invaluable knowledge for dealing with trauma incidents including seizures, choking, burns, bleeding, snake bites and cardiac events.
Sign up for online First Minutes Matter Trauma Training at – firstminutesmatter.org.au
Thank you to Land Rover, the proud sponsors of the LifeFlight Special Mission helicopter, who are also supporting LifeFlight and Shine Lawyers in implementing the First Minutes Matter Trauma Training program, by providing a new release Defender 4WD vehicle, to ensure our medical experts can deliver the workshops to communities in regional Queensland.
