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Guidance
A basic life support plan covers the steps taken to help an injured or sick person, in the first minutes after an illness or injury.
Learning basic first aid techniques can help you cope with an emergency.
You may be able to keep a person breathing, reduce their pain or minimize the consequences of injury or sudden illness until an ambulance arrives. This could mean the difference between life and death for them.
In an emergency, when in contact with emergency services, follow the dispatch operators instructions.T
The basic life support plan: DRSABCD
Danger
Response
Send for help
Airway
Breathing
CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation)
Defibrillator
Personal Protective Equipment PPE options
Danger
Always check the danger to you, any bystanders, and then the injured or ill person.
Make sure you do not put yourself in danger when assisting another and continually assess the situation.
Response
Identify whether the person is conscious.
Do they respond when you talk to them, touch their hands or squeeze their shoulder.
Approach the person to the side, near their head.
Send for help
Call emergency services.
If unable ask a bystander or other person.
Don’t forget to answer the questions asked by the operator.
Airway
Is the person’s airway clear?
Is the person breathing?
Person responding
If the person is responding, they are conscious and their airway is clear, assess how you can help them with any injury they may have.
Person not responding
If the person is not responding and they are unconscious, you need to check their airway by opening their mouth and having a look inside.
If their mouth is clear, tilt their head gently back (by lifting their chin) and check for breathing.
Breathing
Check for breathing by looking for chest movements (up and down).
Listen by putting your ear near to their mouth and nose.
Feel for breathing by putting your hand on the lower part of their chest.
Person breathing, but unconscious
If the person is breathing but unconscious, turn them onto their side, carefully ensuring that you keep their head, neck and spine in alignment.
See Airway photo for reference.
Monitor the person’s breathing until you hand over to the emergency services.
Person NOT breathing and unconscious
Start CPR.
CPR – 1 of 2
! Personal Protective Equipment !
If available from a first aid kit, use a CPR mask.
If an adult is unconscious and not breathing, make sure they are flat on their back and then place the heel of one hand in the centre of their chest and your other hand on top.
Press down firmly and smoothly (compressing to one third of their chest depth) 30 times.
Give two breaths.
CPR – 2 of 2
! Personal Protective Equipment !
If available from a first aid kit, use a CPR mask.
To get the breath in, tilt their head back gently by lifting their chin.
Pinch their nostrils closed, place your open mouth firmly over their open mouth and blow firmly into their mouth.
Keep going with the 30 compressions and two breaths at the speed of approximately five repeats in 2 minutes, until you hand over to the ambulance officers or another trained person, or until the person you are resuscitating responds.
Defibrillator – 1 of 2
For unconscious adults who are not breathing, apply an automated external defibrillator (AED) if one is available.
Defibrillators are often available in many public places, clubs and organizations.
About
An AED is a machine that delivers an electrical shock to cancel any irregular heart beat (arrhythmia), in an effort get the normal heart beating to re-establish itself.
The devices are very simple to operate.
Just follow the instructions and pictures on the machine, and on the package of the pads, as well as the voice prompts.
Check
If you notice a bracelet or a tattoo on the patient’s chest, wrist or forearm saying, ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ or ‘DNR’, do not use an AED on them.
Danger
Do not use an AED if the person is in water or wet.
In wet conditions, AEDs can be dangerous to use, causing harm to the victim or the person providing the care.
Defibrillator – 2 of 2
If the person responds to defibrillation, turn them onto their side into the recovery position.
Tilt their head to maintain their airway.
Some AEDs may not be suitable for children.