The Key Emergency Principle
The key principle taught in almost all systems is that the rescuer, be they a lay person or a professional, should assess the situation for Danger.
The reason that an assessment for Danger is given such high priority is that it is core to emergency management that rescuers do not become secondary victims of any incident, as this creates a further emergency that must be dealt with.
A typical assessment for Danger would involve observation of the surroundings, starting with the cause of the accident (e.g. a falling object) and expanding outwards to include any situational hazards (e.g. fast moving traffic) and history or secondary information given by witnesses, bystanders or the emergency services (e.g. an attacker still waiting nearby).
Once a primary danger assessment has been complete, this should not end the system of checking for danger, but should inform all other parts of the process.
If at any time the risk from any hazard poses a significant danger (as a factor of likelihood and seriousness) to the rescuer, they should consider whether they should approach the scene (or leave the scene if appropriate).
Read more about this topic: Emergency Action Principles
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