ETHICAL RULES AND FEATURES OF FIRST AID PROCEDURE FOR VICTIMS BY RESCUE SERVICE FORCES AND DOCTORS IN EMERGENCY SITUATIONS

Abstract

According to the United Nations, during the last 20 years, about 3 million people died in the world as a result of natural disasters, and almost 1 billion experienced the harmful effects of natural disasters. Currently, apart from natural disasters (earthquakes, floods, landslides, etc.), numerous hazards emerge from human activity, potentially triggering emergency situations. The simultaneous occurrence of mass sanitary losses in various types of disasters requires the implementation of emergency medical measures by medical professionals, while the general population should be capable of providing basic medical assistance. At a certain historical stage of human development, social upheavals such as wars and epidemics joined natural phenomena. Natural disasters, major industrial accidents, and transportation catastrophes are common and frequent occurrences. From the multitude of natural disasters and major technological catastrophes, notable events include: the Chernobyl nuclear accident (1984), the earthquake in Armenia (1988), a railway disaster with an explosion on a gas pipeline in Bashkiria (1989), an explosion in an underground passage in Moscow (2000), an explosion at Domodedovo Airport (2012), the COVID-19 pandemic (2020), an explosion at a warehouse with ammonium nitrate in the port of Beirut (2020), an earthquake in Turkey (2023), and so on. The number of disasters worldwide shows no tendency to decrease, just like the number of terrorist threats. Understanding the rules of ethics, procedures, and methods of providing first aid to the injured in extreme situations are essential for specialist physicians, rescue services, and the general civilian population.