I sat my CPR course today to renew my Electricians License for another 5 years (Which is standard for the Electricians in Australia).
I thought I’d write about it as it had changed since my last visit to the First Aid course.
I went to a place at North Lakes and the course only took about 2 and half hours in total to complete and they run them on a Sunday for $55
I booked through Queensland First Aid through their online booking system too which was fantastic and they have many different CPR classes you can attend.
They have First Aid classes at Alexandra Hills, Brisbane City CBD, Browns Plains, Geebung/Zilmere, Newmarket, Northlakes, Springfield Lakes, Ipswich, Gold Coast, Toowoomba and Townsville.
To book online it is all just drop menus, select your location you want to to sit the CPR course, select the course you want (There are two types CPR and Apply First Aid (Incorporating CPR), then select the Date you want to do the course.
Submit, Pay via Credit Card and then turn up, easy!
They, as well as running CPR courses and First Aid Training, sell the First Aid Kits etc online too, so all your First Aid Supplies can be purchased in one online shop too.
As well as learning the ins and outs of CPR guidelines and using the CPR dummy to practice on, they run on a new system now called the DRS ABCD for when you arrive at a scene or incident.
This stands for Danger, Response, Send for help, Air ways, Breathing, C.P.R and Defibrillator.
The new one added is the “Send for help” which means whatever you are doing up to that point, you make sure you (or someone you delegate) have called the correct emergency phone number to get help on its way fast if needed.
D :: Danger
Make sure there is no danger to yourself, the victim and others around you also in the surrounding area.
Some examples of danger could be; spilt liquids, traffic, glass, debris, other people, no light etc.
R :: Response
Check the victim can respond to you, this is mainly to see if they are unconscious or conscious.
You can do this by asking questions or giving them a gentle tap.
S :: Send for Help
Call 000 or 112 on your mobile if you have no signal on your phone.
The best phone to call 000 from is the home phone, they know where you are straight away and can get someone there very fast, also if you can’t hold the phone for some reason, then knowing where you are is a bonus as they can get someone there a lot faster.
The problem with calling from mobile phones is the operators wouldn’t know where you are and you maybe put through to a call centre initially to see which state you are in.
A :: Airway
Check the airway is clear, if not make sure you try to clear it if safe to.
B :: Breathing
Check to see if the victim is breathing.
Put your ear to the mouth of the victim and see/feel if they are breathing or not.
Then you can ascertain if they need to be put into the recovery position or they need CPR.
C :: CPR
If you reach here its game on, 30 compressions and then 2 Breaths is the ratio.
D :: Defibrillator
Check and ask for a Defibrillator.
The Defibrillator is a machine that shocks the heart into a normal rhythm and is useful when a victim has suffered a heart attack or when a heart is beating irregularly.
Defibrillators are like a one stop shop for CPR victims, they shock the heart and also have the timing in them for CPR too, they bark out order to you and when to clear etc once you have the pads in the correct place on the victim.
So, I refreshed and learnt a lot today in the CPR classes at North Lakes, as well as getting my CPR certification straight away to use for my Electrician registration.
I can recommend if you need to do CPR courses in Brisbane as you need a certificate for your work, don’t be a dummy and book online through Queensland First Aid, you won’t be sorry.
