Suppose you see someone fall. How do you act then? First, check the victim’s consciousness. Shake the shoulders and address the victim. When someone is unconscious and therefore no longer approachable, first make sure that you and the victim are in a safe place. Then lift the chin by placing two fingers under the chin and tilt the head back. Now check the breathing by hanging your ear just above the nose and mouth of the victim, with your eyes towards the chest. You may hear or feel the air flow or see the chest rise and fall. If no breathing is present, immediately make sure that 112 is called (by someone else, if available) and proceed to resuscitation and follow the instructions of the 112 dispatcher.
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CPR someone works like this:
- Place the victim on his back, preferably on a hard surface.
- Kneel by the victim’s upper arm. Place one hand (fingers spread) in the center of the chest. Place your other hand (fingers spread) on top of this hand. Interlock your fingers, straighten your elbows and make sure your shoulders are straight above your hands.
- Press the sternum five to six centimeters a hundred times per minute. Stop after every thirty chest compressions to give mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
- Then tilt the victim’s head slightly. This will open the airway well and allow you to look at the victim’s chest with an oblique eye. Pinch the nose, place your mouth around the victim’s mouth to prevent air from escaping, and blow briefly and gently into the mouth. If you do it right, you will see the chest rise. After two breaths, immediately resume giving the next 30 chest compressions. If ventilation is not successful, continue with chest compressions. These are more important to the survival of the patient than the ventilations.
- Continue CPR until rescuers arrive and indicate that you can stop. If necessary, alternate with someone else every two minutes, because resuscitation is very tiring.
If there is one AED (automatic external defibrillator) is present, you can use it during resuscitation. The AED is a device that ‘resets’ the heart, as it were. If possible, use an AED and listen to the AED’s instructions.
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CPR in children
For children, CPR is almost the same as for adults. You only press the chest of a child less deeply during chest compression. A standard AED is suitable for children over eight years of age. An AED with adjustments is available for children between one and eight years old. According to the Resuscitation Council, there is insufficient evidence to make recommendations on the use of AED in children under one year of age.
CPR in babies
The resuscitation of a baby is different on certain points from that of adults.
Mouth-to-mouth resuscitation baby
- During mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, place your mouth over the mouth and nose of the baby.
- Blow less forcefully during mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to avoid lung damage.
- You give a baby fifteen to twenty times per minute (about once every three or four seconds).
Borstcompressie baby
- During breast compression for a baby, you press the chest just below the nipples. You press to a depth of one to 2.5 centimeters.
- You give a baby 80 to 100 chest compressions per minute.
- Alternately give two breaths and fifteen chest compressions. Repeat this until the rescuers arrive. So you give about eight rescue breaths in a minute.
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For this article we collaborated with Gezondheidsplein.nl. There you will find many more articles on health, checked by doctors and medical specialists.
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