Treating Adults and Adolescents
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Check Responsiveness
- Tap person’s shoulder and shout, “Are you okay?”
- Check breathing – if no signs of life call 911
- Begin Hands-Only CPR – you should not perform Hands-Only CPR on persons for drug-overdose, near-drowning or an unwitnessed reason – in such cases perform CPR conventionally with rescue breathing
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How to Chest Compressions
- Place heel of hand on lower half of breastbone (center chest)
- Lace fingers together with other hands on top of hand
- With straight arms stay directly above hands
- Push hard and fast with compression at least 2 inches
- Allow full chest coils before repeated pushes
- Keep compression rate at 100 per minute
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When to stop
- Person breathes normally
- EMS or trained responder arrives
- Exhaustion overwhelms you
- An automated external defibrillator (AED) arrives on scene
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Using an AED
- Turn on – follow step-by-step instructions
- Make sure chest is dry or wipe dry
- Attach pad correctly
- Plug in AED if it uses a cord instead of batteries
- Make sure no one touches person by saying, “Clear” so that people know not to touch the person
- Push “Analyze” if needed
- If a “Shock” is needed attempt a “Shock”
- Follow AED instruction and resume Hands-Only CPR if prompted
For video instruction watch this video from the American Heart Association.
Call 911
- Person collapses
- Person is unresponsive
