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First aid

Calm, step-by-step first response for neuro emergencies. Tick each step as you go.

This is general guidance, not a substitute for trained first aid or medical care. In an emergency, call your local emergency number straight away.

Spot a stroke - act FAST Sudden face droop, arm weakness, or trouble speaking - even if it passes. Call your emergency number immediately. Every minute counts.
  1. Face - ask them to smile. Has one side drooped?
  2. Arms - can they raise both arms and keep them up?
  3. Speech - is it slurred or muddled? Can they repeat a simple phrase?
  4. Time - if any of these show, call emergency services now. Note the time symptoms started - clinicians need it.
  5. Stay with them, keep them calm, and don't let them eat or drink.

Don't

  • Don't give food, drink, or medication
  • Don't wait to 'see if it passes' - a TIA is still an emergency
  • Don't drive them yourself if an ambulance is available
Convulsive seizure The person falls, stiffens, and jerks, and isn't aware of their surroundings. Call for help if it lasts over 5 minutes, repeats, is their first, causes injury, or they struggle to breathe afterwards.
  1. Note the time it starts.
  2. Cushion their head and move nearby objects out of the way.
  3. Loosen anything tight around the neck.
  4. Once the jerking stops, gently roll them onto their side (recovery position).
  5. Stay with them, reassure them, and wait until they're fully recovered.

Don't

  • Don't restrain their movements
  • Don't put anything in their mouth
  • Don't offer food or drink until fully alert
Choking (adult or older child) They can't speak, cough, or breathe, and may clutch their throat. If they can't clear it, call your emergency number - and start CPR if they become unresponsive.
  1. Encourage them to keep coughing if they still can.
  2. Give up to 5 firm back blows between the shoulder blades.
  3. Give up to 5 abdominal thrusts (just above the navel).
  4. Alternate 5 back blows and 5 thrusts until it clears or help arrives.

Don't

  • Don't slap the back while they're upright and still coughing effectively
  • Don't do abdominal thrusts on a pregnant person or infant (use chest thrusts)
Someone has fallen A fall at home, especially with weakness, dizziness, or balance problems. Call for help if they hit their head, can't move a limb, have severe pain, or can't get up.
  1. Stay calm and check whether they're hurt or responsive.
  2. If injured or unsure, keep them still and comfortable and call for help.
  3. If unhurt, let them rest a moment, then help them up slowly in stages - roll to their side, to kneeling, to a chair.
  4. Afterwards, watch for delayed pain, confusion, or a head-injury change.

Don't

  • Don't rush them straight to their feet
  • Don't move them if a serious injury is possible
Autonomic dysreflexia (spinal cord injury) Sudden pounding headache, flushing/sweating above the injury, and a blocked nose in someone with a higher-level spinal cord injury. This is an emergency - it can be life-threatening. Get urgent medical help if it doesn't settle quickly.
  1. Sit the person upright and lower their legs. This helps bring blood pressure down.
  2. Loosen anything tight - clothing, belts, straps, abdominal binders.
  3. Look for the trigger - most often a full bladder or bowel. Check catheters and drainage bags for kinks or blockages.
  4. If it doesn't resolve fast, call emergency services.
  5. Tell responders it's autonomic dysreflexia - not everyone knows it.

Don't

  • Don't lie them flat
  • Don't ignore it - blood pressure can rise dangerously
  • Don't delay calling for help if the trigger can't be found
After a knock to the head Someone has hit their head - from a fall, sport, or accident. Call emergency services for loss of consciousness, repeated vomiting, seizures, weakness, slurred speech, or fluid from the nose or ears.
  1. Keep them still and calm; check they're responsive.
  2. Apply gentle pressure to any bleeding with a clean cloth.
  3. Watch closely for the warning signs above over the next 24-48 hours.
  4. Rest from screens, sport, and hard mental work at first, then ease back gradually.
  5. Seek advice if symptoms are severe, worsen, or don't settle.

Don't

  • Don't let them return to sport the same day
  • Don't give alcohol or sedatives
  • Don't assume 'they seem fine' rules out a bleed - keep watching

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