Handling an Emergency: CPR Under the Latest AHA Guidelines

Tragedy can strike family, friends and even strangers in the most unlikely of situations. From medical emergencies such as drowning and cardiac arrest to traumatic emergencies like car accidents and falls where trauma results in heart failure, CPR performed properly and in a timely manner can greatly increase the chance of survival for the victim while you wait for Emergency Response Personnel to arrive. Done incorrectly, the effectiveness of CPR is greatly reduced and can even cause additional trauma to the victim. It's important to know the proper steps and how to execute them.

While this guide will explain the proper protocol for CPR, it is highly recommended that anyone interested in learning should take a course from a Certified CPR Instructor (certified with the American Heart Association). Classes typically cost less than $75 and are offered in a variety of places, sometimes for free, and will give you hands-on training. Check with your local School, Hospital or Red Cross for information on CPR courses.

If you find yourself in a situation where you're over a person who has become unconscious and is no longer breather, check for life signs before you do -anything-. You can cause severe damage to someone and even stop a beating heart by performing chest compressions on someone that still has a pulse. Try to rouse the person by shaking them and loudly speaking to them, use their name if you know it and ask "are you OK?". If you get no response, check for life signs. Using two fingers, gently place them on the carotid artery on the side of the neck just under the jaw line and feel for a pulse. If you feel nothing press a little harder. Lean down near their mouth looking at their chest. Look/listen/feel for any air movement or chest rise. If you still feel no pulse, gently arch the victims head slightly. If you have something like a shirt or jacket you can roll it up and place it behind the neck to keep it arched. This will open the victims airway and help keep it open.