Emergencies unfortunately happen every day, and your ability to take action could be the difference between life and death for a stranger or family member. Kristin Tivener, clinical instructor in the department of sports medicine and athletic training at Missouri State University, gives tips to empower a bystander to perform Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Tips

1. If in a public place, ask for an automated external defibrillator (AED), which is designed so that even an elementary school-aged child could follow the instructions.
2. Ask a bystander to call 911 (or call them on speaker phone while you begin compressions).
3. Give compressions at the rate of about 100 beats per minute. Singing a song like the Bee Gees’ “Stayin’ Alive” will keep you at the right pace.
4. Compress to about two inches in depth. Continue even if you feel a bone crack.

“In most cases, the hands-only CPR is now being taught to the ‘layperson,’ or the individual who is taking a course for his or her own personal interests,” said Tivener, whose class demonstrated the traditional CPR (compressions and breath). “Traditional CPR is taught to all individuals taking a course that will be using these skills as some sort of a health care provider. But either way, you could save someone’s life.”

For more information, contact Tivener at 417-836-3795.