Faced with a medical emergency, but don’t know what to do? Do not worry, help is at hand. This WellnessKeen article lists some of the best first aid apps for your smartphone.
First Aid, first!
According to a statistic released by St. John’s Ambulance, around 140,000 people die each year in the U.K., from incidents where basic first aid could have averted the fatality.
Medical science has come a long way since the time when medicines, and even basic knowledge about simple remedies, was something that was reserved for the village medic. Today, we have easy access to most self-administrable medicines at the local chemist. The Internet too, has opened a whole new dimension in the treatment of health problems, wherein detailed procedures and the list of appropriate medication is available at the click of a button.
The sad part is that, in spite of easy access to all this material, we are often clueless about what to do in case of a medical emergency. Scores of people die each year due to the lack of proper and timely first aid; this is often because the people around them are plain ignorant about the right first aid techniques that can potentially save a life. But there is an easy way out.
About 80% people in the world today have a mobile phone. Out of these, about 1/5th (roughly 1.08 billion people) have a smartphone. Today, there’s more to a smartphone than just basic phone functionality. The biggest advantage a smartphone has over the conventional mobile phone is its versatility, thanks to a never-ending treasure trove of applications.
Given a scenario, wherein you, or someone around you, gets hurt, but you don’t know what to do … wouldn’t you want to be able to help in some way? Well, armed with your smartphone, and the right first aid app, you could just be the hero everyone is looking for. There are apps available to help you deal with something as small as a bruise, or something as big as helping deliver a baby in an emergency! Of course, not enough emphasis can be given to the fact that these apps are in no way meant to be a replacement for proper medical attention, but they should help you administer basic first aid, while you wait for help to arrive. Given below are five of the best first aid apps available in the market today.
WebMD Mobile
From one of the most popular medical websites on the Internet, WebMD Mobile is a very detailed, yet simple app. The app features a very handy first aid instruction kit, along with the Symptom Checker from the website. It has a huge database of information about various drugs, and has a unique pill identification tool.
Price : Free
Android
iOS
iTriage
iTriage is a unique app which goes way beyond being just an instruction manual to help you with first aid. The app helps you make a quick diagnosis of the possible cause of your discomfort, and suggests the next course of action. If your phone supports GPS, the app can locate the nearest hospitals and specialized doctors who can help you with your problem. It also gives you patient reviews of the hospitals and doctors that you choose to go to. While the app itself is free, you would need to make an in-app purchase to access certain content.
Price : Free
First Aid – American Red Cross
First Aid – American Red Cross has one of the cleanest and most appealing interfaces of all the available apps in the market today. It has a fairly minimalistic design, with simple tabs that make using this app an absolute breeze. It gives you general information about various ailments and first aid tips as well. It also has a special tab which instructs you how to handle an emergency, like an earthquake, fire, or drought. The app features videos and graphics which explain how you need to go about handling a medical emergency, and administering first aid.
Price : Free
Android
iOS
GotoAID First Aid
A fairly basic first aid app, GotoAID First Aid has a database covering over 400 topics dealing with first aid. The app features step-by-step instructions that are designed to help you respond to various medical emergencies. What makes this app unique is the fact that it also has separate sections that cover first aid for your dog or cat. The app also has a disaster management module which helps you prepare for and deal with an impending calamity.
Price : 4.99 USD
Android
While they might seem like the newbies in the mobile OS arena, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone have an impressive number of first aid apps as well. Here’s taking a look at the best of the lot.
First aid
First aid by British Red Cross, is the official first aid app released by the organization. It features various videos with step-by-step instructions to help deal with most medical emergencies. It also has plenty of FAQs to help understand different first-aid scenarios.
Price : FREE
BlackBerry
First Aid Box
As the name suggests, the app acts as a good first aid box of suggestions about how to handle injuries, and administer timely first aid. It offers users with interactive digital content, wherein users can get more information and tips about health.
Price : FREE
BlackBerry
First Aid
First Aid by Inmax Media makes for a handy guide to administering first aid, and even helps you with information about basic life support. It features an elaborate illustrated walk-through about how to approach an emergency, and what to do in such a scenario.
Price : USD 1.99
BlackBerry
Medical Triage
This app takes a very different and fun approach to explaining the basics of first aid to its users. The app has an interactive module, wherein the users are posed with questions pertaining to different medical emergencies, and are given a few answers to choose from. This makes for a rather interesting way to learn and understand first aid.
Price : FREE
Mobile First Aid
Arguably the most comprehensive first aid app for Windows Phone, Mobile First Aid offers simple and easy-to-understand advice about dealing with medical emergencies. The steps are explained with simple illustrations, which further help explain the first aid techniques to be used in a given scenario. The user can look up various symptoms, and find out the potential causes for them.
Price : FREE
CPR·Choking
As the name suggests, this is a handy app in case you have to help a choking victim, and perform CPR if required. The app lets you choose the scenario (choking or CPR), the age of the victim (infant, child, or adult), and watch relevant videos that can help you deal with the situation.
Price : FREE
SAS Survival Guide
SAD Survival Guide is more than just a first aid kit, it is a handy, survival kit. It gives the user access to plenty of videos explaining how to deal with most medical emergencies. The app also helps you with a checklist of items to carry along in a medical kit.
Price : USD 3.99
While we may not be able to avert every accident, we can, with the help of these apps, gear up to handle situations better, and administer crucial first aid when the situation demands it.
Disclaimer: Prices mentioned in this article are subject to change without prior notice and do not include any promotions or offers.
