With some quick one-day classes, a visit to the blood donation center, or even a click of a button, you have the potential to preserve someone’s life.
Keep reading to learn more.
1) Join the Bone Marrow Registry
Thousands of critically and terminally ill patients have the potential to be saved by a bone marrow donation.
A bone marrow transplant takes a donor’s healthy blood cells and puts them into a patient’s bloodstream. After the transplant, the patients donated blood cells will grow and create additional healthy red and white blood cells.
2) Donate Blood
In the United States, 43,000 pints of donated blood are used to save a life each day, and your one donation can be used for up to three people.
A person may receive blood because they are undergoing surgery, have a blood-related disease, suffer from a severe infection, or have extreme blood loss.
Many people overlook blood donation because of the common misconception that factors like obesity, cannabis consumption, and STDs will disqualify you.
3) Learn The Heimlich
Each year, around 5,000 people die, and about 12,000 children are seen in the emergency room because they choked on food or a foreign object.
Since Henry Heimlich developed his infamous maneuver in 1974, thousands of lives have been saved each year.
Often, the Heimlich maneuver is performed by a stranger or parent, similar to in the movies.
4) Learn CPR
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, saves the lives of about %12 of the people it is performed on.
CPR is the combination of chest compressions and artificial ventilation, and when executed correctly, these actions can keep the heart beating and prevent oxygen loss to the brain.
It’s estimated that if CPR training was common, an additional 200,000 lives could be saved each year.
5) Become an Organ Donor
When you go to the BMV to renew your license, check the organ donor box because when you pass, you may be able to save up to eight lives with your donations.
Around 125,000 Americans are not so patiently waiting for an organ donation at any given time.
Of those patients, 6,500 will pass away because they did not receive an organ in time.
When you donate an organ, you save a patient’s life and the lives of their loved ones.
6) Be Supportive
When a loved one seems depressed, struggles with addiction, mentions self-harm, needs a ride because they are drunk, etc., you may save their life by offering support.
Sadly, suicide is one of the leading causes of death and nearly %50 of individuals show warning signs that were taken lightly.
If more people show support and take these signs seriously, many suicides can be prevented.
7) Get AED Certified
Automated external defibrillators or AEDs are the heart paddles you see doctors use as they yell CLEAR! In movies.
AED machines are amazing life-saving devices that send electrical pulses to the heart, restoring the heartbeat of someone flatlining during cardiac arrest.
These machines are becoming just as popular as fire extinguishers but are rarely used because few people know.
With cardiac arrest being the most common cause of death in the US, everyone should consider getting AED certified.
8) Spread Awareness Online
The power of the internet is not only mind-blowing but life-saving.
Most social media users can recall multiple times when they saw a post showing life-saving tips.
For example, many people have seen posts explaining signs of a stroke or a post that teaches you how to avoid sudden infant death syndrome by simply removing blankets and pillows from a baby’s crib.
Whenever you see one of those posts, share it because your one share could reach thousands of people and save many lives.
9) See Something Say Something
“See something say something” originated as an anti-terrorism poster, but the phrase should be remembered and used anytime you see something potentially dangerous.
You could save lives by reporting or bringing attention to things like:
- Unstable trees that need cut
- Domestic violence
- Drug related incidents
- Erratic driving
- Dead batteries in a smoke or CO2 detector
- Bullying
If you ever see something that makes you concerned or feel nervous, say something because you never know what might happen when you walk away.
Life is precious, and we know that every person deserves to live a full one. Therefore, many people contemplate how they can save a life and make a difference.
Luckily, there are many ways, such as donating blood, bone marrow, and organs, becoming CPR and AED certified, learning the Heimlich, spreading awareness, and speaking up when you see something potentially dangerous.
Leave a Reply