Health emergencies

Getting help in an emergency

Canadian communities have trained medical and rescue workers to help you in case of a fire, an accident or a medical emergency such as a heart attack. Many Canadian towns and cities have an emergency telephone service called Emergency 911.

If you have a medical emergency, use your telephone to call the number 911. This number reaches an operator who sends police, the fire department, paramedics or an ambulance to help with the emergency.

The emergency procedure

Stay calm. Call 911 or your local emergency line or go to the emergency department of the nearest hospital.

If you call 911, be ready to give the emergency operator the following information:

• The type of emergency
• Your address
• The injured person’s condition. Is the person awake? Is the person breathing? Is the person bleeding? Is the person in pain?
• The cause of the injury

Once you have given the information, make sure you do the following:

• Follow the emergency operator’s instructions.
• Do not touch the injured person unless you are told to do so.
• Wait for help to arrive.
• Comfort the injured person by talking to them calmly and by reassuring them that help is on the way.

Keep an emergency list beside your phone

In addition to the 911 emergency number, there are other important numbers that you may need in an emergency. Put a list beside your phone or in some other place where you can easily find it of the emergency telephone numbers in your community.

Some emergency numbers you may wish to include are: child and family services, domestic violence crisis line, kids help phone, poison helpline and sexual assault crisis line. The abbrs of these organizations vary from city to city. Emergency numbers for your community will listed near the front of the white pages in your telephone book.

MedicAlert tags

If you have a serious medical condition such as diabetes, high blood pressure or allergies (especially to any medications), ask your doctor about MedicAlert tags or bracelets. Information on the tag will help doctors treat you in an emergency. If you need one, wear it at all times. You can find out more about MedicAlert tags and how to get one on the MedicAlert Canada website.

Learn more about:

• Finding a doctor
• Immunization
• Medical surveillance
• Healthy living