Heart attack How will I know? – Could it be a heart attack? Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Recovery position Life-saving stories from people like you Finding someone in pain or distress is The person may have pain in the centre of their chest and/ If a person becomes A – Open the Airway C – Start Cardiopulmonary • Rescue breaths Keep going until: scary. But by knowing a few key things or aching in their arms, neck and jaw. They may feel sick, If a person is unconscious but they are still breathing unconscious follow the Place one hand on the Resuscitation (CPR) Open the airway again and you can help save a life. breathless, dizzy and can look paler and sweaty. • professional help arrives normally you should put them in the recovery position. Jenny was walking to the bus station when she instructions below. casualty’s forehead, and pinch the soft part of the • Chest compressions and takes over, came upon a 16 year old girl lying on the ground. gently tilt the head back, casualty’s nose closed. Take This booklet will help you recognise Remember DRS ABC. Kneel next to the casualty. • the casualty starts to How to put someone in the recovery position She realised the girl had been drinking and then lift their chin using two a normal breath, make a and deal with: What should I do? Place the heel of one hand in show signs of regaining had been vomiting; she was unconscious but fingers of your other hand seal around their mouth 1 Place their arm nearest to 5 Gently tilt their head back Check: the centre of the casualty’s consciousness, such as breathing normally so Jenny decided to protect • Possible heart attack 1 Sit them on the floor, 4 Stay with them, keep them under their chin – when you and breathe out steadily. you out at a right angle. to make sure their airway chest. Place the heel of your coughing, opening their her airway and place her in the recovery position. • Serious bleeding with their back against calm and reassure them. • Danger do this you open their airway. The casualty’s chest should If they are wearing glasses remains open. other hand on top of the eyes, speaking, or moving The girl had been left alone but a few moments • Choking something that won’t Don’t give them anything Approach the casualty with rise and fall. Keeping the remove them. first. Interlock your fingers. purposefully AND starts later her boyfriend turned up. Jenny told him to move, like a wall. Bend to eat or drink. care. Look out for hazards B – Check for normal casualty’s head back and 6 Call 999, and regularly With arms straight push the to breathe normally, phone 999 for an ambulance as the girl was unable It will teach you how to: their legs up. such as fire, traffic and Breathing the chin lifted, take your 2 Bring the far arm across check the person’s breastbone down 5–6cm OR to care for herself and appeared to be in a bad 5 If they become electricity. Never put Keeping the airway open, mouth away, take another their chest. breathing. • Put someone in the recovery position and release. The correct • you become exhausted. way. A fast response ambulance car arrived very 2 Get someone to call 999, unconscious, put them yourself at risk. check if the casualty is normal breath and give a • Give CPR to someone who has rate is 100 to 120 chest quickly as did an ambulance. The paramedic in or go yourself and come in the recovery position. breathing normally by second rescue breath. The 3 Place the back of their hand stopped breathing normally • Response compressions per minute, Giving Chest charge told Jenny that she had done a very good back straight away. Tell the looking for chest movement, two breaths should take no against their cheek that is Find out if the casualty is that’s almost 2 per second. Compression only job and had helped save the girl’s life. ambulance you think it’s 6 If they stop normal listening for breathing and longer than five seconds. nearest to you. Keep hold responsive. Gently shake the You may find it helpful to If you have not been trained Jenny (age 15) a heart attack. breathing, start CPR. feeling for breath on your of the hand. casualty’s shoulders and ask count out loud. Give 30 chest Repeat 30 compressions to give rescue breaths, are cheek. Look, listen and feel loudly ‘are you alright?’ If the compressions. and 2 rescue breaths. not able, or not wanting to, 3 Loosen anything around for no more than 10 seconds. 4 Bend the far leg just above casualty does not respond… just give chest compressions. their neck, like a tie. If you are sure the casualty After 30 chest compressions the knee and pull it up, This is much better than • Shout for help is breathing normally give 2 rescue breaths. and then roll the person doing nothing at all. Give the Paul and Tim witnessed a man collapse. If someone is nearby ask turn them in the recovery towards you. Symptoms chest compressions at a rate He was still breathing normally but them to stay with you position. If the casualty is of 100 to 120 per minute. appeared unconscious. They put the man because you may need them not breathing normally ask into the recovery position and rang 999 to phone for help. If you are someone to call 999. Also for an ambulance. They stayed with him alone shout loudly to attract ask for an automated until the ambulance arrived. attention, but do not leave external defibrillator (AED), Paul & Tim (age 17) the casualty. if one is available. If you are on your own you will have Pain or the pain may or may spread to they may feel sick discomfort in spread to the left the neck and jaw or short of breath to leave the casualty and the chest that or right arm call 999 yourself. doesn’t go away Choking How will I know? Life-saving stories from people like you Bleeding How will I know? Life-saving stories from people like you How to save a life A person who is choking will have difficulty breathing A person has serious bleeding when the problem cannot Would you know what to do? and may turn blue. If they are conscious they might try to be solved by applying a plaster to the wound. show that they are choking by grasping their neck with Aisha’s friend Sarah choked on a Andy’s mum sliced off the end of her finger their hands or pointing to their throat. sweet which blocked her airway. Aisha and felt faint. Andy told his mum not to panic. remembered her first aid skills and gave He raised her arm and pressed on the bleeding What should I do? Sarah back slaps and then abdominal wound. He laid her down on the floor and thrusts. The sweet was cleared from her 1 Sit the person down so 6 Come back and stay with What should I do? covered her with a blanket to keep her warm. airway. Sarah was taken to hospital for they feel safe. the person and keep He told his Dad to phone for an ambulance. 2011 is the British Heart Foundation’s 50th birthday. 1 Ask them “are you 4 Repeat the back slaps and a check and is fine now. them calm. Andy sat with his Mum and talked to her until Since 1961, we have been the nation’s heart charity, choking?” abdominal thrusts if this Aisha and Sarah (age 10) 2 If you can’t see where the ambulance arrived. dedicated to saving lives through pioneering doesn’t work. the blood is coming from 7 If you can, raise the Andy (age 8) research, patient care, campaigning for change 2 If they can’t answer start expose the area around wounded part of the body and by providing vital information. But we giving them up to 5 back 5 If the casualty becomes the wound. so it is higher than the urgently need your help. We rely on your slaps, checking after unconscious: heart; so if their leg was donations of time and money to each one to see if the • Support the casualty 3 Get them to press cut lay them down and continue our life-saving work. obstruction has gone. carefully to the ground. down on the wound raise it high. Because together we can • Immediately call 999 with something clean beat heart disease. 3 If back slaps don’t work Rob was out with his Dad at the weekend like a towel. Put some 8 Lie them down if they for an ambulance. and came across a man choking. Rob had give 5 abdominal thrusts • Start CPR. disposable gloves on your feel faint. Anyone with a Lucy and Gail were on an excursion with the and check again after each covered this in the Heartstart course so he hands, if you have some. wound on the chest may school. They were in the sports hall chatting one to see if you have knew how to do back slaps and abdominal need to sit up. with friends when a boy was accidently hit cleared the obstruction. thrusts in order to clear the man’s airway. 4 If there is something in the on his nose by a racket. He suffered a deep Anyone receiving Rob (age 16) abdominal thrusts must wound, like glass, squeeze 9 Keep them warm.