Break out the BBQ and fairy lights it’s Cup Week! (then Christmas)
With spring underway, and summer hot on our heels, we might make use of the great weather and dust off the BBQ tongs. It’s silly season, with lots of laughing, eating and drinking, so be careful not to choke!
There are two types of choking, and it is important for us to differentiate between them:
- A partial airway obstruction is where the victim can still cough, breathe and speak. Encourage them to cough and keep monitoring their breathing, call 111 if you are concerned about their breathing or if the coughing does not dislodge the object.
- A full airway obstruction is where your victim cannot make any sound, cannot breathe or talk. Follow these steps to help someone with a full airway obstruction:
- Call 111 immediately.
- Stand at right angles to them, hold their shoulder and deliver up to five back blows with the heel of your hand, between the shoulder blades.
If the back blows are unsuccessful there is a lot more that you can do.
Stand behind the victim, place the thumb side of your fist in the middle of their chest. Place your other hand on top of your fist and deliver up to 5 chest thrusts, pulling straight back towards you.
Complete this cycle until the object is released or until the victim becomes unconscious. If they do become unconscious, start your DRSABCD process. Prevention is better than cure, so remember to chew your food. Children can choke on food easily due to their biting, chewing and food-grinding skills still being developed.
To reduce the risk of choking on foods you can:
- alter the food texture – grate, cook, finely chop or mash the food.
- remove the high risk parts of the food – peel off the skin, or remove the strong fibres.
- avoid giving small hard foods, such as whole nuts and large seeds, until children are at least five years old.
To learn more about choking and how to save a life — book a first aid course with us today! Click here to view our range of refresher and 8hr first aid course dates. Or for group bookings please contact firstname.lastname@example.org