Non-Communicable Diseases, Emergency Care and Mental Health Module: 8. Gastrointestinal Emergencies, Choking and Basic Life Support Techniques

Study Session 8  Gastrointestinal Emergencies, Choking and Basic Life Support Techniques

Introduction

Non-injury emergencies are life-threatening conditions such as appendicitis and intestinal obstruction, poisoning and choking. They are certain to occur in your community and require your urgent help in supporting the life of affected people before they are transferred to a higher health facility for specialised treatment. In this study session you will learn about the most common non-injury emergencies, and how to detect those which, if unattended, might result in death. You will also learn how to prepare patients with these conditions for referral.

This study session ends with a section on basic life support techniques, which applies to patients with non-injury emergencies and also to conditions such as airway obstruction, bleeding, or multiple injuries as described previously in Study Session 7.