In this article we are going to talk about the basics of life support 'CPR', sometimes called 'Basic Life Support.'
First aid is a vast subject and there are many different injuries and illnesses you can come across on a day to day basis. To learn about first aid in more detail you should consider a first aid at work course, this is a 4 day course and covers a range of injuries and illness from CPR to head injuries, bandaging to broken bones. First aid at work is not the only course available there are a number of different courses in first aid, including Sports specific (4 or 1 day), appointed persons (1 day), de-fib (1 day) and oxygen therapy (1 day).
Let us return to our question at the start of this article, you are walking down the street and you see someone collapse in front of you, what do you do now? Are you going to be the one to do something, or are you going to stand back and hope that someone else takes action? It is often the case that people who know what to do will sit back and let others take control! If you want to know how to deal with an emergency at work or at home then get yourself onto a first aid course. A trained first aider would carry out the following procedures; before you go trying this in real life always attend a first aid course to gain practical experience on a resus doll, where a qualified tutor can check you are carrying out these procedures correctly, if you don't then you could do the casualty harm.
The actions taken in this situation are often remembered as: Dr ABCD
'Danger'. If some has collapsed your first action should always be to ensure that you are safe. Following this you need to make sure that the scene is safe (check for Danger), this includes; checking for any traffic, fire, electricity, water etc.
'Response'. Check the casualty for any response, call to the casualty, ask if they can hear you and pinch the casualties ear. When you speak to the casualty call into each ear. If there is no response then move onto the airway.
'Airway'. Open the airway, to do this lift the chin back. Often when someone falls unconscious the tongue can block the airway and by tilting the head back as shown (left) you will open the airway. This could encourage the casualty to breath straight away, if they do then you need to just put the casualty in the recovery position and monitor them.
'Breathing'. Listen to the casualties mouth to see if there is any breathing. If you cannot feel or hear normal breathing then you need an ambulance. At this point ask someone to go and call for an ambulance and tell them as much detail as you can about the casualty, make sure they come back and tell you when it is done.
'Chest Compressions'. Now you have established that there is no breathing or abnormal breathing you need to commence CPR. To do this grip your hands together and press down in the centre on the chest 30 times (approx 1/3 of the chest depth) as shown (left). The chest compressions should be quite fast (little more than 1 a second)
Once you have completed 30 compressions you should give the casualty 2 rescue breaths. To do this hold the nose closed and breathe into the casualties mouth as shown (left). This takes a little getting used to and practicing in a classroom environment is always beneficial.
- The casualty starts to breath
- The ambulance crew tell you to stop
- Or you become exhausted and can't carry on.
The table below shows the order the above procedures should be carried out in and acts as a good reminder. Remember this is just a basic introduction to first aid, to tell you everything you need to know would be impossible in such a short article. If you want to learn about first aid then we suggest you attend a registered course . When booking onto a course make sure that the company you are booking with is registered with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and remember that there are different procedures for children and babies.
Richard Beale
RB Health and Safety Solutions Ltd
Tel: 0845 2571489
Web: www.rbhealthandsafety.co.uk
