Life-Saving Tips Everyone Should Know

7 March 2016
 Categories: , Blog


If you don't know basic CPR or how to help someone who is drowning, you are lacking basic life-saving skills. There are certain skills everyone should know that can help them save a life of any age. Here are some of the more important ones to learn.

Saving Someone From Drowning

There may come a time when someone is in a local body of water and at risk of drowning. While it may seem simple getting them out of the water, it can be rather difficult, especially when that person is larger or heavier than you. There are a few different ways to help them, depending on what is nearby and what type of water they are in. For example, if they are in a swimming pool, try to find a safety ring you can throw in. If you can swim, go into the pool and help pull them to the edge of the pool. When they are in the ocean and you can stand on a dock, start pulling them up while you lie flat on the dock, as this prevents you from falling in with them.

Performing CPR

You may also need to perform CPR on someone, whether they were drowning or stopped breathing for another reason. If you can, take local CPR and first aid classes so you can learn the most accurate way of performing it on an infant, child, or adult. Other than that, there are some simple techniques you can learn now. In CPR, you first need to figure out if the person is responsive, then call 911 if they are not breathing or responding. The third step is to start doing chest compressions, followed by forcing breath into their mouth, and alternating until emergency help gets to you.

Doing the Heimlich Maneuver

If someone is choking, do you know how to save them? You might have seen people perform this on television, but that doesn't mean you can do it easily without knowing the right technique. To do the Heimlich maneuver, you need to help dislodge whatever is caught in their throat. To do this, create a fist with your hands under their ribcage by wrapping your arms around them. Press into the abdomen with the fist while pushing upward. This should hopefully force the object out of their throat within a few tries.

If you find someone in need of medical help and you don't know what to do, take them to a medical centre.


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