First Aid for Bleeding Emergencies

Stay calm. Follow these key steps:

• Check for danger – Make sure it’s safe for you to approach (e.g., traffic, broken glass, aggressive people)
• Call for help – Dial 999 and ask for an ambulance
• Start first aid – If it’s safe, apply pressure to the wound to help stop the bleeding

Reassure the person – Let them know help is on the way

• Only move them if there’s an immediate danger (e.g., traffic, fire)
• If they’re safe, try to keep them still and calm. Movement can make bleeding worse

Tell the call handler:

• Your exact location (look for street signs or landmarks or use what3words)
• What happened (e.g., fall, accident, stabbing)
• How the person is (conscious, breathing, how much bleeding)

Follow their instructions — they will guide you step-by-step

• Apply firm, direct pressure to the wound with a clean cloth or whatever you have available
• If blood soaks through, don’t remove the first layer – just add more on top and keep pressing
• Encourage the person to lie down if possible and raise the injured limb above the level of their heart (if it doesn’t cause pain)

Yes! In emergencies, use:

• Clothing, scarves, clean rags, or even sanitary pads to press on the wound
• Plastic bags or wrappers as makeshift gloves if you are nervous about touching blood

In an emergency, the cleanliness of the cloth is important, but stopping the bleeding is the priority.

• Clean cloths are best so if you have a clean t-shirt, towel, or cloth, use that
• If the cloth isn’t perfectly clean don’t stress. Any cloth is better than nothing, the most important thing is to apply pressure to stop the bleeding.
• If the cloth is dirty, like something from the ground or contaminated, it could introduce infection, but it’s still better to use it than do nothing. In this case, just apply pressure.

• If you have no cloth, use your bare hands to apply pressure. Make sure they’re as clean as possible, but don’t wait — pressure is more important.

This could be a sign of arterial bleeding, which is serious.

• Call emergency services immediately and inform them that the bleeding is heavy
• Apply very firm pressure as close as you can to the source of bleeding
• If you're trained and one is accessible, use a tourniquet, but only if someone else can get it for you – otherwise, keep pressing hard

No — don’t lift it. When you press on a wound, your pressure — along with the material you're using — helps the blood start to clot and seal the vessel that's bleeding. If you lift the cloth or dressing to ‘check’ it, you might pull off the clot, and the bleeding could start all over again, or even get worse.

• Once you’ve placed something on the wound and started applying pressure, leave it there even if it is soaked

• If it soaks through, just add another layer of cloth, bandage, or dressing on top, and keep pressing firmly

Soaked doesn't mean it's failing — it means you’re keeping the bleeding under control. Leave it on, keep pressing, and help the body do its job.

As hard as you need to stop the bleeding. Push like you’re trying to stop water bursting out of a leaking garden hose — not patting it but really pressing it down.

• Use both hands if you can
• Push hard and steady — don’t be gentle

• Don’t worry about hurting them — stopping the bleeding is the top priority. A person can recover from a bit of pain or bruising — but they won’t survive losing too much blood
• Keep continuous pressure — don’t let go until help takes over

Yes — stay with them until help arrives. If they lose consciousness:

• Check if they’re breathing
• If not, start CPR – the 999 call handler will guide you through it
• If they are breathing, but unconscious, put them in the recovery position and keep watching them

No don’t leave them - every second counts and if you leave, no one is stopping the bleeding. They could die in minutes. Stopping the bleeding now is more important than running to find equipment — use what you’ve got and stay with them.

• A person with a severe bleed can lose their life in under five minutes
• The pressure you're applying might be the only thing keeping them alive
• If you walk away, the bleeding can start again fast, and they could lose consciousness or worse

You won’t. The worst thing is doing nothing.

• Your goal isn’t to fix the wound — it’s to buy time until paramedics arrive
• If they are bleeding heavily the most important thing is to press and hold. That alone can save their life.
• Even if it’s not perfect, doing something is far better than doing nothing

That’s normal — and it’s okay.

• Bleeding control hurts, especially if it’s working
• Most people with serious wounds are already in pain
• You’re not hurting them — you’re helping them survive

If they’re talking and reacting, that’s actually a good sign — it means they’re still with you

Avoid these common mistakes:

• Don’t remove objects stuck in a wound — they may be stopping the bleeding
• Don’t give the person food or drink — it could be dangerous if they need surgery
• Don’t delay calling for help — even if the bleeding seems to slow down

The risk of catching an infection from helping is very low, especially if you avoid direct contact. If possible, use gloves or a clean cloth to avoid direct contact with blood. If you don’t have gloves:

• Try to use clothing, plastic bags, or anything as a barrier
• Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water after helping