Basic Life Support
Page 2 of 7
Basic Adult CPR
When confronted with a medical emergency situation, remember following algorithm:
H-H-H-A-B-C-D (Hazards - Hello - Help - Airway - Breathing - Circulation - Defibrillation)
- Hazards. Move person to a save place and or remove hazardous material that may be dangerous to you or the person.
- Hello. Assess person's responsiveness by tapping on his or her shoulder and asking, "Hello, can you hear me?" or " What's your name?" If person responds, treat his or her basic needs, such as compression on a nosebleed, to keep person comfortable till help arrives.
- Help. If the person is unresponsive, SHOUT for help or ask a bystander to standby while you check for breathing.
- Airway. Open airway by placing palm of one hand on the person's forehead to tilt the head backward, while lifting the bony part of person's chin forward with the fingers of your other hand. If you suspect a neck injury, do not tilt the head backward, but just lift or pull the chin forward.
- Breathing. Keeping the airway open, determine if person is breathing by placing your ear over the mouth facing the chest and feel, listen, and look for any breathing or chest movement. Take up to 10 seconds for this important procedure.
- Breathing present. If an unconscious person is breathing, turn person on his or her side and hold person's chin up to prevent tongue from falling back and obstructing the airway again and also to allow blood or secretions to drain from mouth. Turn person as a unit by placing person's hand closest to you under his or her face, place his or her opposite hand and leg across his or her body, grab person by the hip with one hand and roll person gently toward you as your other hand supports person's chin and face. This is called the "Recovery position." Cover person with a blanket and stay with him or her until help arrives, continuously checking person's breathing.
- Breathing not present. With one hand holding the jaw, just open the mouth and look inside for any visible foreign objects. If nothing is visible, keep the mouth open, and with the other hand sweep a finger across the inside of the mouth being careful not to push any object down the airway. Remove mouth guard and put dentures back in place since they help in providing a proper seal for mouth-to-mouth breathing.
- At this stage, you have an unconscious person that is not breathing and is going to need CPR. Ask your helper to call 911 immediately and to tell them what the emergency and give details about location and a telephone number. If there is no helper, call 911 yourself because the sooner trained staff with proper equipment arrive, the better chance for a successful resuscitation.
- If you are alone or the person is a child (or a drowning victim), give CPR for one minute, before calling emergency personnel. Return immediately to your victim and start rescue breathing by placing the person on his or her back on a firm surface. Mouth-to-mouth breathing is done while tilting the forehead backward with the one hand and, with the same hand, pinching the soft part of the nostrils closed with the thumb and index fingers. Take a deep breath and place your mouth as a seal over the persons partially opened mouth that is hold in this position by your other hand. Administrate a slow full breath into the person's airway for approximately 1.5 seconds, making sure the chest moves as you breathe. If no movement of the chest is observed, tilt the head more and hold the chin more upward. Lift your mouth and, while keeping the airway open, turn your head toward the person's chest so as to feel the exhaled air against your cheek, while you inhale another full breath for the next cycle. Give 2 effective breaths while giving proper time for exhalation. Then check for evidence of circulation, movement, swallowing, or presence of a pulse.