Pakistan: teaching journalists to save lives

Pakistan: teaching journalists to save lives

Islamabad/Geneva (ICRC) – The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is providing training in first aid for journalists from Pakistan working in violence-affected areas.

Reporters from the Tribal Union of Journalists were recently given three days of training in Peshawar, where they were taught how to save lives in emergency situations. Until now, training of this kind has been centralized, with journalists from Lahore, Karachi and Peshawar attending sessions in Islamabad. Peshawar is the first place where training has been provided for journalists this year. Further sessions are scheduled in 2010 in other parts of the country, including in the Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan.

"Accidents, bomb blasts and other emergencies are frequent, and journalists are generally the first to arrive at the scene. If they know the basics of first aid, they can save many lives while also protecting themselves," said Dr Asif Raza, the Pakistan Red Crescent first-aid coordinator for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). "That is why we are providing journalists working in tribal areas with basic skills to deal with these kinds of situations when no one else is around to help."

Because of the high number of incidents in FATA causing mass casualties and the limited number of ambulances, the emergency services often struggle to respond quickly. First aid, rapidly provided, can save lives until emergency services arrive with more highly skilled personnel.

"We have learned a lot from the training we received, because now we know what to do if someone is injured," said Zafar Wazir, the Tribal Union of Journalists press secretary. "In FATA, there are not many medical facilities – and none like those in big cities. So an injured person's life may depend on what we can do to help. Since journalists keep moving around, from village to village and from city to city, they are well placed to provide first aid where it is needed, once they have been trained."

Over the past few years, the Pakistan Red Crescent emergency response service has come to play a crucial role in saving lives. The service, provided throughout most of the country, uses fully equipped ambulances staffed by paramedical assistants and first-aid workers. The ICRC provides support for Pakistan Red Crescent medical and first-aid centres in fighting-affected areas. The facilities perform vital services in the wake of numerous and often indiscriminate security incidents.

Life-saving first aid is a highly valuable skill, particularly in the strife-torn areas of Pakistan. While the ICRC regularly assists victims of the fighting at its hospital for weapon-wounded patients in Peshawar, a major part of the success achieved there depends on what actions are taken before patients are brought in. The training provided by the ICRC and the Pakistan Red Crescent therefore plays a critical role in ensuring that many casualties survive.

ENDS

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