Get CPR certified. It’s easy, usually free, and may save a life.
In most cases, you can take a class and finish the certification in a day. You never know when it might come in handy.
Here are some notes I took during my certification. I start with some definitions, then get into the protocols I learned.
What is a Heart Attack?
Heart Attack: plumbing problem. Blockage prevents blood flow. Can result in damage to a portion of the heart muscle due to a lack of oxygen and nutrients.
CPR is NOT typically performed for a heart attack, as the heart is still beating during a heart attack. Instead, the focus is on seeking immediate medical attention for the person experiencing the heart attack.
What is Cardiac Arrest?
Cardiac Arrest: electric impulse / rhythm problem where the heart doesn’t pump. Instead, the heart is fibrillating / vibrating in a non-effective way, so the heart isn’t able to push blood through your body. The natural heart-beat needs to be re-started (typically done with an AED).
Cardiac arrest is a sudden and often unexpected loss of heart function. During cardiac arrest, the heart’s electrical system malfunctions, causing the heart to stop beating or to beat irregularly in a way that does not effectively pump blood to the body’s vital organs. Cardiac Arrest can lead to unconsciousness and the absence of a pulse.
What is CPR?
CPR stands for Cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the purpose is to keep your organs alive by manually pumping blood (and thus oxygen) through the heart and to the rest of the body.
You have about 10 minutes worth of oxygenated blood in your body. CPR keeps you alive long enough to receive further medical care from medics on an ambulance or at a hospital.
What is an AED?
AED (automated external defibrillator) resets the heart beat. Use the AED as soon as it is available (if the person is not breathing). If the person still has a regular heart beat (NOT fibrillating), you probably DON’T want to use an A.E.D.
Protocols
Protocol for assessing the scene and patient (before CPR):
- Is the scene safe? If Yes, go to step 2. If no, don’t engage and call help via 911 or other.
- Is the person responsive? Either way, go to step 3:
- Call 911
- Breathing? If yes, continue to monitor. Search for injuries, medical jewelry, and monitor if the patient gets worse until help arrives.
- If the person is NOT breathing, begin CPR
Protocol for CPR
After assessing the scene, if CPR is indicated, do 30 chest compressions (at a pace of 100-120 BPM, to the beat of the “Stayin Alive” song), then 2 rescue breaths.
As of the class I took, giving breaths is optional. You may not want to risk getting sick if they are sick for example.
When you are doing chest compressions, let the chest re-coil.
Rescue breaths: breath for 1 second until you see chest rise. You don’t want to over-inflate the lungs or the air may go down the esophagus and the person could throw up.
If there is another person with you who is able, you can take turns doing chest compressions (it gets tiring). When doing CPR, do 5 rounds each, (or 2 minutes ) and then switch with a partner, so you don’t get too tired.
Protocol for AED
Turn it On, and follow the prompts. (its super simple)
The AED works by electrically shocking the person to re-start the heart.
The machine will tell you to stick pads on the person above right chest, and below left arm pit (from patient’s point of view). The pads stay on the person when you resume CPR.
If the person is very hairy, see if there’s a razor to shave the hair because the pads need to have good skin contact. The pads have to stick to the patients skin to give the shock. Otherwise, use the extra set of pads to wax the hair off.
Don’t put AED pads on top of a pace maker. If they have a pace maker, put the pads next to it.
The AED machine will tell you if the heart starts beating again.
Other stuff that’s good to know
Cyanosis: blue color of skin or nail beds means an absence of oxygen in blood. If a patient has a dark complexion, you can check for cyanosis on skin the inside of their bottom lip. It will have a blue tint if lack of oxygen.
Epinephrine: similar to adrenaline. Dilates your blood vessels and esophagus to allow you to get more air. A dose of epinephrine from an Epipen only works for about 10 minutes… so you’ll need another when it wears off. Epipens can cost around $700, so a lot of people don’t carry them with them.
Stroke: for signs of stroke, use the F.A.S.T. acronym:
- F. face drooping
- A. arm weakness
- S. speech difficulty
- T. time to call 911 if the above are present.
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