First aid isn't all about sticky plasters

I feel I have been very remiss in not writing a blog post for quite some time but I've actually done very little first aid work since moving from Somerset to Berkshire. I have started going to a new division though and the training session last night inspired me to get writing again.
  
The session was led by an A&E trauma nurse who went into detail on what happens when it all goes horribly wrong and more than a sticky plaster is required. This got me thinking about what people's expectations are when they sign up as a first aider. I won't deny that a lot of first aid work can be mundane, dealing with nothing more serious than cuts, scrapes or wasp stings. That does not mean it won't get more eventful though and first aiders should perhaps be more prepared for the worst.
  
I've been quite fortunate to have dealt with a few interesting cases. Okay so fortunate is probably not the right word to use as that clearly implies someone was rather unwell but I'm sure you understand what I mean.
  
Crewing an ambulance as it rapidly transfers a small child to hospital with suspected meningitis; trying to extract a racing driver with a suspected broken back from his car; performing CPR in the middle of a supermarket with no defib available; and crewing an ambulance during a major incident have all provided me with quite a varied experience. They are not all experiences I would necessarily want to got through again but I value them nevertheless and have learnt a lot from them.

Having an A&E trauma nurse telling everyone that instead of learning our ABCs we should be learning our CABCDEFGs hammers it home that the next duty may involve more than just sticky plasters and all first aiders should be ready for anything.
  
You can never truly prepare for the worst as the worst case scenario would be something you've not prepared for. I'd like think however, that along with many of my St John Ambulance colleagues back in Somerset, we'd at least be ready a bad day in the office.
  
I'm sure there are plenty of other acronyms that people use, but for the record CABCDEFG is:
  
Catastrophic haemorrhage
Airway
Breathing
Circulation
Deformity
Environment
(Don't)
(Ever)
Forget
Glucose