UKC

By their nature, falls tend to happen suddenly and unexpectedly. But you can still be prepared. When someone hits the ground hard, what you do in the first few minutes can have a huge impact on their outcome and the safety of anyone else with you, says Cory Jones of the First Aid Training Co-operative.

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Where to start....  Ok, the primary survey - the author clearly expects all readers to know already what this is.  They don't - it needs to be explained.

The assumption that the reader is qualified in basic trauma life support continues with a clear expectation that they;

 - understand the difference between an open and closed airway. Alongside what to do about it.

- can assess and know what an effective normal pattern, depth and rate of breathing is.

- can find a pulse let alone know what to feel and find from it or do about it.

- can manage external haemorrhage.  The author doesn't even mention the possibility of bleeding being where is can't be seen until very late in the article.

C - spine protection; Whilst i think too much focus is put upon this generally, it needed to have been mentioned early in any discussion regarding fall from height. Even just how if you're alone, how difficult this is to do.  It isn't step 4 of the primary survey.

I appreciate the time and effort taken to produced this and there is of course plenty of good information being provided here but, out of this series, the basics of a primary survey and recognition of life threatening problems should have been the best of the articles delivered and I don't think it is.

Perhaps MREW could have been contacted for help in its production.

I'd swap 3 and 4 around, ignoring the comments above about knowing how to check for life threatening injuries, you shouldn't be moving legs and other bits to treat bleeding without already presuming spinal because they've fallen. Just presume spinal from the start, stabilise head and neck, head between knees / rucksacks, tell them not to move, approach them from the front initially so they don't crank their head around to look at you etc... you can primary survey the upper body with their head between your knees. Use others to assist. Etc etc..