Understanding The Basic Steps In Life Saving Hands On CPR
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I worked in the cardiac unit of a busy hospital. Even though I was a front desk person I was taught steps on how to do cpr. I never had to use what I was taught but was always glad that I had the training and certification from the American Heart Association just in case. Even though I no longer work in a hospital I have kept up my cpr certification.
The American Heart Association often sponsors local classes that show the steps on how to do cpr. If you look in the community notes section of your local newspaper you may find your local hospital offering classes in the 7 steps of cpr.
There are no statistics available on how many people are saved each year with cpr, but it is known that in the United States cardiac arrest kills 900 adults every day. Even with the widening availability of automated external defibrillators (AED's) more training needs to be done. There are some that advocate that cpr should be taught in local schools.
The American Heart Association is now advocating what they call "hands-only CPR". You can visit their online cpr site and see videos of this technique. Hands-only cpr uses hard and fast pumping on the chest only. No breaths are given to the victim. Within the past several months there have been studies that indicate that hard and fast pumping on the chest keeps the oxygenated blood circulating which is vitally important.
This new hands-only cpr is not only easier for the bystander to perform, studies show it could potentially double the survival rate from cardiac arrest. There is no anxiety about having to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitations on a stranger, which is believe to be one of the reasons that only 1/3 of cardiac arrest victims receive immediate cpr.
The push now of the American Heart Association is to teach people they don't need to worry about harming an adult performing hands-only cpr. They want you to realize that doing something is far better than doing nothing. Doing nothing almost assures the cardiac arrest victim will die. Following the cpr guidelines about 1/3 of victims have cracked or broken ribs, which is a risk worth taking.
Medical personnel say that you want the chest to depress approximately 2 inches. Push hard and fast between the nipples, in the center of the chest. Many public areas have automated external defibrillators or AED's. It is recommended that an AED be used after two minutes of unsuccessful chest compressions.
The American Heart Association estimates that three-quarters of all sudden cardiac arrest cases that occur outside the hospital happen in the victims home. The life you may save learning the steps on how to do cpr may be a loved one.
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