This is part of a series of articles on the subject of sailing safety. These articles will attempt to combine different ideas on safety from sources such as the Red Cross, personal experience, computer programming and other outdoor pursuits.

The phrase assesing health comes from the KISSWPE survival list. Preperation is a step to be taken in just about any area of safety.

Should you enter a situation on the water where a person’s health is in question there is a method you can use in assesing their health. Knowing this will help you be prepared to care for them.

This is part of a larger exam that would be given in a wilderness first aid setting. Certainly this one example would be one of only many things you would learn in a proper wilderness first aid course.

One way to assess a person’s health is to check for alertness and orientation. If a person is awake and can tell you who they are, where they are and what time it is they are said to be AO*3. This is a normal condition.

If they can tell you who they are and where they are but not what time it is, they are AO*2.

If they know only their name it’s AO*1.

The theory being that since your birth you’ve been told who you are. This should be something you know almost no matter what
the circumstance. Knowing where you are is second on the scale. Third is the time of day.

In order of importance the factors are: who they are, where they are and what time it is.

This is just one part of a thorough exam. Essentially the less they are able to answer, the worse their health may be.

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