CPR: Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

Lately what I feared the most had happened. I was sitting in front of my computer happily blogging when all of the sudden I thought, "How do you do CPR again?" And that's when it hits me, my being out of the clinical area for one month has weakened my thinking ability and I now forgot how to do Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation. And to think I even had a Basic Life Support training that I had from Red Cross.

But there's no need in crying over spilled milk, I have to review and reacquire that skill which I believed I was already good at. So how do you perform CPR? Here is a graphic illustration of the steps in CPR which I guess summarizes everything I need to remember:
Here are some facts and tips that I have remembered:

• the brain is damaged after 3 minutes of no air and dies after 4-5 minutes without oxygen
• always add "1000" after every number when counting from 1 to 30. Adding a "1000" word will make the pace of chest compressions regular and mimic the normal beat of the heart.
• If you are in a scene of an accident always look around and check if the scene is safe, you do not want to become one of the victims
• Always remember the ABC... Airway (check for obstruction and tilt head and chin back to open airway), Breathing (check if the person is breathing), Circulation (check for a pulse).
• Do not bend your elbows when doing chest compressions, doing so will deliver a weak and ineffective chest compression

For more information on CPR you might want to visit health.howstuffworks.com.