Some selected commercial drivers and transport operators in the La Nkwantanang Municipal Area, Accra, have received training in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)/ First Aid to enable them save lives in the event of road accidents.
Drivers were eager to get first aid training in Toronto and become heroes in eventual misfortunes on the road.
CPR is an emergency procedure consisting of chest compressions often combined with artificial ventilation in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a person who has cardiac arrest.
The training, organised by Jadarls Foundation, a non-governmental organisation, in collaboration with the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC), was to equip the drivers with the necessary skills to act as first aid providers during such emergency situations.
The 25 drivers were selected from the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), AMOT Transport Union and Cooperative, and are expected to train their counterparts on basic life support.
Opening the training session, the Deputy Director, Medical Training and Simulation Centre, University of Ghana Medical Centre, Dr Gladys B. Nuamah, appealed to Ghanaians to desist from taking pictures at accident scenes and splashing them on social media.
According to her, it was important to check if victims at accident scenes had suffered cardiac arrest and this could be done through finding out whether a victim was responsive, or breathing.
Additionally, Dr Nuamah said Ghanaians should, at least, undergo yearly check-ups to detect whether they have some cardiovascular diseases, stressing that “the practice where some Africans did not like reporting to the hospital should be discarded”.
“Ideally, we should at least visit the hospital every year for a check-up. It should be a birthday present. We should not wait until we get sick, and we are carried in a vehicle to the hospital,” she added.
Mr Justice Ayee, Human Resource Manager of Jadarls Foundation, said a number of accidents and cardiovascular diseases occur at various lorry stations, and most drivers lack the knowledge on how to help in terms of providing basic life support.
Mr Ayee said the drivers would be offered free First Aid kits to assist them in helping victims when the need arises.
Ms Davida Pappoe, Programmes Lead, Jadarls Foundation, said the foundation observed that some people die because they did not have any knowledge on how to handle injuries or the injured.
She said apart from the training, the foundation would offer the drivers stickers and pen drives containing life-saving messages and learning materials for passengers to watch and learn from those materials.
Mr Joseph Tetteh Arthur, Secretary, Madina-Somanya GPRTU, was optimistic that the training would assist him to handle emergencies
BY CLIFF EKUFUL
