Haiti Political Blog

As everyone is aware, Haiti has been devastated these past month by four hurricanes; more than 25,000 homes were destroyed. But most of the destruction and loss of life took place in the Gonaives region of Haiti. To assist in the relief effort for Haiti, a group of concerned Haitian citizens and non for profit organizations in South Florida are now collecting clothes (adults, children, and babies), blankets, sheets, canned and dry food, personal hygiene items, small cooking ware, household articles, etc….. to be shipped by the end of this month.

Members of the group will be going to Haiti to supervise the distribution to grass roots organizations in Gonaives.
The above items donations should be dispatched to:

U.STORE.IT
South Florida Gonaives Relief Drive
19395 SW 106th Ave, Miami, Fl 33157
Participating in the South Florida Gonaives Relief Drive (SFGRD) are the following Floridian organizations:

Boystown of South Florida, 9722 SW 184th Street, Miami, FL 33157,
Contact: Jacqueline Valme – (786) 293-9680
Kendall Hammocks Soccer, 14751 Hammocks Bld. Miami, Fl. 33186
Contact: Ron Valme – (305) 598-8463
Miami Dade College, 627 SW 27th Ave, Miami, Fl
Contact: Michelson Jeancy – (786) 277-0927

Fanm Aysyen Nan Miyami (FANM)/Haitian Women of Miami
8325 NE 2nd Ave - Suite 100 Miami, Fl 33138;
Contact: Marlene Bastien (305) 756-8050

All tax-deductible money donations to (SFGRD) should be made out and mail to FANM with a notation on the check for ”GONAIVES RELIEF”

Thank you for your assistance,

Gilbert R Valme
Coordinator SFGRD
Cutler Bay, Florida, 33189
305 969 9340
786 473 9883

Some friends of mine recently asked me if we had information on swimming technique. He asked if we had articles on the teaching of swimming?

Obviously my first reaction was to search in our video section if we had any information on swimming technique.
Here is the link on Archivex for great videos on swimming technique.

As for the Blog Alerts here are the links online:

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First aid symbols are very powerful symbols and most people don’t realize just how powerful these pictures can be. The most easily recognized symbol is the first aid moniker, which is world known.

Below are some tips to help you learn the first aid symbols so that you can identify them easily.

What Does the Symbol Look Like?

If you’re unfamiliar with the first aid symbol, it looks a lot like a cross or a plus sign with equal length lines. This symbol can be found in a variety of colors, though it is seen most often in red and white (with the lines being red and the background white) or in blue and white (with the arms in white and the background in blue). If you go to the American Red Cross site, you will be able to see what the sign looks like and how it is used in various parts of the world.

Finding Help When You Need It

When you don’t have a map readily available, being able to recognize the first aid symbol is crucial to your safety – especially when you are traveling. Since most cities will post signs to their local first aid clinics and hospitals, you need to be able to discern these from other signs that might be posted. Look for these signs along main roads in the area or along highways and express routes.

Drawing for Help

If you can’t find the signs that include the first aid symbol, you might want to draw this symbol in order to get others to point you in the right direction. By saying ‘hospital’ and then showing locals the symbol, you should be able to get to a medical facility quite easily in most countries of the world. You might want to draw out this symbol ahead of time to have it in your wallet or purse for easy access and for easy display to others you might call upon for help.

Other Versions of the First Aid Symbol

You might also recognize the symbol for first aid with green and white colors – green for the background and white for the cross itself. Or the blue and white colored symbol can have the snake symbol from medicine illustrations. Individual hospitals and medical professionals also have their own first aid insignia that can help you determine their ability to help you.

When it comes to helping you, the first aid symbol can alert you to medical facilities as well as to find medical personnel in a crowd – no matter where you are. They are very useful for the population. We encourage majors of all cities in the world to put up first aid symbols to help identify their city first aid facilities.

For more information on First Aid - visit the Complete Red Hat First Aid Guide

Because you’ll probably encounter at least one in your lifetime, it is important to recognize Common First Aid Scenarios. It is difficult to predict the unexpected, you can learn about basic first aid scenarios so that you know what to do. Though you might see televisions shows and read books about medical dramas that include complicated injuries and diseases, chances are slim that you will ever need this level of expertise. You will find below some common first aid scenarios and how to deal with them - for a complete guide on first aid Visit The Complete Red Hat First Aid GuideCuts and Scrapes

No matter how they happen, cuts and scrapes are still the most common first aid scenarios in any situation. Because life comes with sharp edges, your skin is simply going to get torn from time to time. The main thing to be concerned about when this happens is infection. You need to make sure you are cleaning out the wound as much as you can with warm and soapy water. If you don’t have any water on hand, try to use an antibacterial gel or wipe to help remove dirt and germs. Once you have done this, cover the wound up to prevent further infection and monitor for redness, swelling, and warmth.

In the case of a large gash, you will want to apply pressure to the wound to stop the bleeding first before cleaning the area. The body should be able to clot the blood and stop the bleeding within 10 minutes or so, but if this isn’t happening, you need to seek medical attention. These kinds of cuts will probably need stitches or medication.

Heatstroke/Frostbite

If you’re out in nature at any given point of the year, you need to realize that heatstroke and frostbite can happen. These first aid scenarios might not be as dramatic as a broken bone or a gash, but they can turn from problematic to life threatening in minutes. Here are the signs you need to watch out for:

Heatstroke

• Mental confusion
• Lack of sweating
• High body temperature

In this case, you need to douse the person in water as well as try to have them take a sip or two of water each minute. This will help to cool the body and prevent damage to the cells. You don’t want to give the person a lot of water to drink as they are prone to vomiting at this point which will only dehydrate them further.

Frostbite

• Loss of feeling in extremities
• Fatigue
• White or blackened fingertips, ears, nose, etc.

For frostbite, you need to cover the area as much as you can to keep it warm. If you can, run tepid water over the area to start warming it back up, but not hot water as this can cause more damage as the nerves are deadened and won’t be able to feel a burn.

Both of these first aid scenarios can only be managed by you until help arrives – medical assistance will be necessary.

More on First Aid:
The Complete Red Hat First Aid Guide

Now that the Carnaval is over, during which there have been over 600 injured during the 3 days of Carnaval in Port-au-Prince, we taught it was a good idea of offering to readers, information on the Topic First Aid.

We added a complete Red Hat First Aid Guide

About Finding Accurate First Aid Information

If you’re looking for first aid information, you need to realize that not all information is good information. With the introduction of the Internet, websites have been popping up in record numbers, all promising you the best and more accurate first aid information – but is this the truth? When it comes to your health, you can’t settle for inaccuracies or mistruths. Here’s how to sort out the fact from the fiction.

Books and Magazines

When you’re looking for first aid information you can store in your home or workplace, books and magazines are a great resource that’s portable. However, with the advent of self-publishing, you might be picking up a book that’s never been fact checked or was written from someone’s personal experience and not necessarily based on any medical training. That said, there are many books that are well written and useful. Look for books which were written by doctors or nurses or those who are acknowledged and recommended by the American Red Cross or similar organizations. You might also want to ask your family doctor about the books they recommend you have on hand.

Websites

Since anyone can put up a website with first aid information on it, you need to be even more discerning online. Sites that end in the suffix .edu, .org or .gov tend to be more reliable, but there are also good .com sites as well. What matters most is the author or authors on the site itself. If you can find their names and their credentials, you will be able to tell if this is a site that’s going to offer you useful information. You will also want to look to see when the site was last updated – the more recently, the better. Websites which are affiliated with hospitals or universities are also quite reliable. For a Complete First Aid Guide

Classes

When you want to learn first aid information in a classroom, make sure that you know the qualifications of the teacher. They should be medical professionals and have current licensing or certification to teach. Find out if you will be able to receive a certificate for your participation and how this can be used in your daily life. Obviously, the best classes are those taught by the Red Cross or similar organizations, but your community center might also offer first aid classes.

First aid information is something that needs to be accurate in order for you to use it properly. While everyone may have a different way of teaching the same techniques, in the end, the health of the patient is what matters when you use these techniques.