Your CPR skills might be rusty. Here's what to do in an emergency
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Audio transcript
INTERVIEWER: If you saw someone on the ground, perhaps with symptoms of a heart attack, would you know what to do? A survey from the Cleveland Clinic shows many Americans don't have the knowledge to help someone who's having a heart emergency, and often don't even know the proper way to help themselves. Dr. Jay-Sheree Allen talked about what to do if someone is drowning in our last visit. Today, how you could save someone's life or perhaps your own. Dr. Allen is a physician at Mayo Clinic and the host of the Millennial Health podcast. Hey, welcome back to the program.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to be back.
INTERVIEWER: All right. Now, for folks who are just a little unfamiliar with what we're talking about here, what does CPR do?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: OK. So CPR, which also means cardio, pulmonary, so heart lung, resuscitation, it's an emergency lifesaving procedure. And you utilize that when the heart stops beating. And it literally can save someone's life.
INTERVIEWER: How is it performed? I mean we see it on TV. Is that the correct way to do it on TV?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Oh my God, no.
[LAUGHTER]
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: I think your doctors are a little Greyed Anatomy out. No. So all right, let's talk about it. So there are two commonly known versions of CPR. So the version for health care providers and those who are trained in CPR and that's the conventional way. With chest compressions and mouth to mouth, and we'll talk a little more about that. But we're addressing your listeners today. So I want to talk about for the general public or just bystanders, who witness an adult who just suddenly collapses.
I know it's intimidating, it's frightening, it's really scary. So I want to keep it as simple as possible. Because honestly if you jump into action quickly, you really could increase this person's chance of survival. In fact, you double or triple their chances of survival after a cardiac arrest if you help them with CPR.
INTERVIEWER: Oh my goodness. OK.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Yeah. The statistics are really significant. So here is what we're going to do. You are, I don't know, at the park, wherever you are. Pick your spot. You witness an adult collapse. So the first thing you're going to do is call 9-1-1. If there's someone else around, ask them to call 9-1-1. Or what you could do is actually just put 9-1-1 on your speakerphone, and they can walk you through this process.
So again, if you're really nervous, that's one thing we don't think that we can do. But just dial 9-1-1 and hit speaker. Then, you want to ask someone to get an AED. And I mean these are things you're doing in like two seconds. Call 9-1-1. Someone, find an AED. And then you're going to ensure the person is laying flat on the ground in front of you, you get over them, you put the heel of one hand in the center of their chest, and then you put your other hand on top of the first hand.
And then you are going to push hard and fast. And you're pushing your hand down hard and fast. So it's a workout. And you need to push, the rate we're looking for is around 100 to 120. Commonly we say it's to the tune of Staying Alive. I'm just seeing that in your mind. And that's how fast you should be going. That's the tempo we're looking for.
INTERVIEWER: Like (SINGING) Da, da, da, da, da, da, da,da. Da, da, da, da.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Yeah.
INTERVIEWER: Right.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: You got it.
INTERVIEWER: Thank you.
[LAUGHS]
INTERVIEWER: I'm wondering though, can you do CPR incorrectly and do more harm than good?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Yeah. So you can. Yes. Yes, you can do CPR incorrectly. And we all worry about doing more harm than good. But that's why I said the very first step is calling 9-1-1. So while you are trying to help this individual, professional health care workers are on the way. All right. So I like to take the big picture approach, that bird's eye view. So you have to understand what it is that you are doing.
So think of the heart as a pump. The heart is a pump in the body. What you are essentially trying to help this individual do is keep their blood flow active until help arrives. That is literally it. So the heart is the pump and the pump isn't able to function on its own. You are externally acting as the pump to push their heart to keep that blood flowing.
INTERVIEWER: Mm-hmm.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: So if you think of it that way it's a little less scary.
INTERVIEWER: Mm-hmm. OK.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Hopefully?
INTERVIEWER: Right. It is. It is. It is. So if I'm not able to or don't really know much about chest compressions, you mentioned the AED trick. Start looking around for something like that and use that then?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Yes. So there are many different companies, so they come in different colors. But they're typically these like square boxes that you'll see in different buildings. Now that hopefully we're talking about it, you're awareness of it will increase and you'll start looking around in public spaces wherever you are to see the closest AED. But this means an automated external defibrillator.
So it's essentially a device that can analyze the heart's rhythm. And if it's necessary, it can deliver a shock or defibrillation to help the heart reestablish or go back into an effective rhythm. So that's what this AED does. And I think what will help with that Cathy, is if we level set a little on some definitions. The term cardiac arrest and the term heart attack. We tend to use them interchangeably, but they're not actually the same thing.
So cardiac arrest is an electrical problem. So this is when the heart malfunctions or it stops beating unexpectedly because of an electrical issue. So we call that arrhythmia or it's an abnormal rhythm. It's not working well for you. You want to be in sinus rhythm. The heart attack is a circulation problem. And that is when blood flow to the heart is blocked. So though we use the terms interchangeably, we're talking about different things.
INTERVIEWER: Got it. So super quick, where does someone learn CPR?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: You can go to the website heart.org/cpr and put in your zip code. And they'll show you lots of different locations in your area where you can take a class. I'd highly encourage anyone, especially if you're caring for children or elderly adults, you have anyone under your care, I highly recommend getting certified.
INTERVIEWER: OK. Good information. Thank you, Dr. Allen.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: You are so welcome. I'll see you next time.
INTERVIEWER: All right. Talk to you later. Dr. Jay-Sheree Allen is a physician at Mayo Clinic. She's also the host of the Millennial Health podcast.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to be back.
INTERVIEWER: All right. Now, for folks who are just a little unfamiliar with what we're talking about here, what does CPR do?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: OK. So CPR, which also means cardio, pulmonary, so heart lung, resuscitation, it's an emergency lifesaving procedure. And you utilize that when the heart stops beating. And it literally can save someone's life.
INTERVIEWER: How is it performed? I mean we see it on TV. Is that the correct way to do it on TV?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Oh my God, no.
[LAUGHTER]
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: I think your doctors are a little Greyed Anatomy out. No. So all right, let's talk about it. So there are two commonly known versions of CPR. So the version for health care providers and those who are trained in CPR and that's the conventional way. With chest compressions and mouth to mouth, and we'll talk a little more about that. But we're addressing your listeners today. So I want to talk about for the general public or just bystanders, who witness an adult who just suddenly collapses.
I know it's intimidating, it's frightening, it's really scary. So I want to keep it as simple as possible. Because honestly if you jump into action quickly, you really could increase this person's chance of survival. In fact, you double or triple their chances of survival after a cardiac arrest if you help them with CPR.
INTERVIEWER: Oh my goodness. OK.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Yeah. The statistics are really significant. So here is what we're going to do. You are, I don't know, at the park, wherever you are. Pick your spot. You witness an adult collapse. So the first thing you're going to do is call 9-1-1. If there's someone else around, ask them to call 9-1-1. Or what you could do is actually just put 9-1-1 on your speakerphone, and they can walk you through this process.
So again, if you're really nervous, that's one thing we don't think that we can do. But just dial 9-1-1 and hit speaker. Then, you want to ask someone to get an AED. And I mean these are things you're doing in like two seconds. Call 9-1-1. Someone, find an AED. And then you're going to ensure the person is laying flat on the ground in front of you, you get over them, you put the heel of one hand in the center of their chest, and then you put your other hand on top of the first hand.
And then you are going to push hard and fast. And you're pushing your hand down hard and fast. So it's a workout. And you need to push, the rate we're looking for is around 100 to 120. Commonly we say it's to the tune of Staying Alive. I'm just seeing that in your mind. And that's how fast you should be going. That's the tempo we're looking for.
INTERVIEWER: Like (SINGING) Da, da, da, da, da, da, da,da. Da, da, da, da.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Yeah.
INTERVIEWER: Right.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: You got it.
INTERVIEWER: Thank you.
[LAUGHS]
INTERVIEWER: I'm wondering though, can you do CPR incorrectly and do more harm than good?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Yeah. So you can. Yes. Yes, you can do CPR incorrectly. And we all worry about doing more harm than good. But that's why I said the very first step is calling 9-1-1. So while you are trying to help this individual, professional health care workers are on the way. All right. So I like to take the big picture approach, that bird's eye view. So you have to understand what it is that you are doing.
So think of the heart as a pump. The heart is a pump in the body. What you are essentially trying to help this individual do is keep their blood flow active until help arrives. That is literally it. So the heart is the pump and the pump isn't able to function on its own. You are externally acting as the pump to push their heart to keep that blood flowing.
INTERVIEWER: Mm-hmm.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: So if you think of it that way it's a little less scary.
INTERVIEWER: Mm-hmm. OK.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Hopefully?
INTERVIEWER: Right. It is. It is. It is. So if I'm not able to or don't really know much about chest compressions, you mentioned the AED trick. Start looking around for something like that and use that then?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: Yes. So there are many different companies, so they come in different colors. But they're typically these like square boxes that you'll see in different buildings. Now that hopefully we're talking about it, you're awareness of it will increase and you'll start looking around in public spaces wherever you are to see the closest AED. But this means an automated external defibrillator.
So it's essentially a device that can analyze the heart's rhythm. And if it's necessary, it can deliver a shock or defibrillation to help the heart reestablish or go back into an effective rhythm. So that's what this AED does. And I think what will help with that Cathy, is if we level set a little on some definitions. The term cardiac arrest and the term heart attack. We tend to use them interchangeably, but they're not actually the same thing.
So cardiac arrest is an electrical problem. So this is when the heart malfunctions or it stops beating unexpectedly because of an electrical issue. So we call that arrhythmia or it's an abnormal rhythm. It's not working well for you. You want to be in sinus rhythm. The heart attack is a circulation problem. And that is when blood flow to the heart is blocked. So though we use the terms interchangeably, we're talking about different things.
INTERVIEWER: Got it. So super quick, where does someone learn CPR?
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: You can go to the website heart.org/cpr and put in your zip code. And they'll show you lots of different locations in your area where you can take a class. I'd highly encourage anyone, especially if you're caring for children or elderly adults, you have anyone under your care, I highly recommend getting certified.
INTERVIEWER: OK. Good information. Thank you, Dr. Allen.
DR. JAY-SHEREE ALLEN: You are so welcome. I'll see you next time.
INTERVIEWER: All right. Talk to you later. Dr. Jay-Sheree Allen is a physician at Mayo Clinic. She's also the host of the Millennial Health podcast.
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