SJWA’s ‘Anyone Can Save A Life’ message comes true for first aider a week after training

A loud crunch of a car and a driver slumped in their seat set in motion first aid training which Trevor Screaigh had just completed less than a week ago.

Mr Screaigh was part of a Northam Clontarf Academy group who received free first aid accredited training on October 16 from community donations to St John WA.

“I felt like I had Liz the trainer there with me talking through using your senses to make sure it was safe, which was why I turned the car off,” he said.

“I thought ‘geez their head’s down’ and I checked and they were not breathing and so I tilted their head back and they started to breathe again just like the ad on the TV.”

Mr Screaigh held the driver’s head back against the head rest while another person rang Triple Zero (000) and a retired nurse assisted on scene until ambulance arrived.

The first aid scenario of titling a head back to open an unconscious driver’s airway was featured in St John WA and the Road Safety Commission’s ‘Anyone Can Save A Life’ campaign to encourage road users to learn first aid.

It was based on the real-life experience of driver Nicole Tolhurst, who was found slumped over the steering wheel by bystander Rod Baltovich in 2007 and was reunited with her saviour in March this year as part of the campaign.

“I got to meet Nicole and her daughter last year. Such an emotional experience because you very quickly can see if Nicole’s life had not been saved that young daughter would not have been here,” SJWA Group CEO Kevin Brown said .

“The whole paths of time completely change with one incident. So I would encourage those who haven’t perhaps done first aid training or need a refresher, please do so. You might just save somebody’s life.”

Every year, St John WA trains about 200,000 Western Australians, including children, in basic to highly accredited first aid as part of its commitment to building strong and resilient communities who can assist one another until ambulance arrives.

For Mr Screaigh, who saw the seemingly minor crash from a shop window, the training gave him the confidence to step forward and assist the driver in those vital minutes before many had even realised something was seriously wrong.

“How timely is that?” he said. “I am so glad I had my son with me on that course because I know he has those same skills that I have because you don’t know when you’ll use them – I probably saved a life.”

First Aid for Drivers or Young Drivers is a free online 15-minute course in road-related first aid, which SJWA has long advocated for every teenager to undertake before they get their licence.

For more information on SJWA first aid visit: https://stjohnwa.com.au/first-aid-training