CPR and first aid: what is there to know?

By Cristiano Antonino On May 24, 2023

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an essential first aid skill for life-threatening emergencies

CPR is performed to resuscitate someone whose heart has stopped beating and who has stopped breathing.

The procedure ensures that the supply of oxygen to the brain is restored.

It is applied to patients and victims of suffocation, neck or head injuries, drowning, suffocation, heart attack or cardiac arrest, among others.

In this article, we wanted to gather the essential information for the ordinary citizen, with the possibility of expanding on this knowledge in the articles at the end.

It is important for ‘non-rescue’ people to have a general idea of what to do while waiting for the ambulance, and to know what will be done when the rescue crew arrives.

In the face of an emergency, every second counts in saving a person’s life.

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Administering CPR earlier increases a person’s chance of survival

It is essential to perform CPR within the first ten minutes after an accident has occurred.

If the oxygen supply to the brain is interrupted for ten minutes, the person may have permanent brain damage with almost no chance of survival.

According to recent research, performing CPR increases the chances of survival of patients in cardiac arrest by 40 per cent.

It is important to note that CPR only applies to unconscious people who are not breathing.

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What are the steps to perform CPR?

Firstly, you must ensure that the person is in a safe environment.

Secondly, you should check if the individual is conscious by tapping him/her on the shoulder and asking aloud: “Are you OK?” Then call for emergency medical assistance.

If you are well trained, get an AED.

If you are not trained… don’t panic: defibrillators have extremely understandable voice guidance systems.

If you follow the directions, it is extremely likely that rescuers will find a clinical situation that can be addressed when they arrive.

The procedure for performing CPR requires only a few steps.

To make it easy to remember, the term CAB stands for compression, airway and breathing (clearly in English).

Lay the person on their back and kneel by their shoulders and neck.

Place one hand on the person’s chest right between the nipples.

Put your other hand on top of the first and interlace your fingers.

Make sure your hands are straight at the elbows and shoulders directly above.

Push hard with your palms using your upper body weight.

Compress the victim’s chest by at least 5 to 6 centimetres (i.e. 2 to 2.4 inches).

Perform 100 to 120 compressions per minute.

If you do not have CPR certification, repeat compressions until the person regains consciousness or until rescuers arrive.

For a younger child and adolescent, you can use one hand to perform the compressions and make them at least 2 inches without exceeding 2.4 inches.

In children aged 4 months and older, chest compressions should not exceed 1.5 inches.

If you have a certification, such as CPR or relevant first aid certification, go through the airway procedure.

This procedure involves tilting the head and chin, followed by 30 chest compressions.

Place one hand on the individual’s forehead, gently tilting the head back.

Use your other hand to open the airway by tilting the person’s chin upwards.

You can perform rescue breaths over the mouth or nose, depending on the victim’s condition.

In this position, with the airway open, pinch the person’s nose and close their mouth with yours.

After the first one-second rescue breath, check if the victim’s chest is moving.

If the person does not respond, give a second rescue breath.

Every second rescue breath should be followed by 30 chest compressions.

Rescue breaths should be gentle.

For children older than four months, cover both the mouth and nose with your own and use the volume of your cheeks to deliver two (one-second) rescue breaths.

If trained to use the AED (automated external defibrillator), apply a shock and resume CPR.

It is no coincidence that we speak of ‘training’: living in a community in which a majority portion is trained in first aid is a goal to which a civilised society (and you are part of it) must strive.