Instruction manual

PROFICIENCY IN SURVIVAL CRAFT AND RESCUE BOATS OTHER THAN
FAST RESCUE BOATS
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rhythms are asystole and pulseless electrical activity. This refers to whether a
particular class of disrhythmia is treatable using defibrillation.
Cardiac arrest is an abrupt cessation of pump function in the heart (as
evidenced by the absence of a palpable pulse). Cardiac arrest can usually be
reversed with prompt intervention, but without such intervention, it will almost
always lead to death. In certain cases, it is an expected outcome to a serious
illness.
However, due to inadequate cerebral perfusion, the patient will be
unconscious and will have stopped breathing. The main diagnostic criterion to
diagnose a cardiac arrest, (as opposed to respiratory arrest which shares
many of the same features), is lack of circulation, however there are a number
of ways of determining this.
How to give heart massage to an adult
1. Check that there is no heartbeat.
2. Lay the patient on his or her back on a firm surface. Kneel beside the
patient's chest.
3. Find the right place to put your hands. Find the lower edge of the ribs.
Follow the edge of the ribs to where they meet the breastbone. Place your
middle finger on the base of the breastbone, and the index finger next to it
(Fig. 15-8), then place the heel of your other hand next to these two fingers,
on the breastbone in the midline of the chest (Fig. 15-9).
Fig.15-8 Place your middle finger on
the base of the breastbone and your
index finger next to it
Fig.15-9 Place the heel of your free
hand next to the two fingers on the
breastbone.