First Aid for choking(Day 4)

First Aid

We are still talking about first aid in common situations.

Do you have a baby or an infant in the house? Babies put  small toys and objects they are attracted to into their mouths.

What do you do if you find your baby choking? This can be a frightening situation for the inexperienced new parent but one with a simple solution. 

In such a situation put the baby face down along the length of one arm and use the heel of the second hand to give some blows to the back. Turn the infant and check if there is any thing in the mouth you can now bring out. if this doesn’t work turn the infant facing you and use 2 fingers to push in and upwards on the breast bone.

Check the mouth again.This should dislodge any object blocking the airway. Go to a hospital immediately if this fails. 

Adult choking

What if you are the one choking or an adult around you? The first thing to do is to try to cough vigorously, this may dislodge the object,

Stand behind a choking person and use the heel of your palm to give some blows between their shoulder blades, They should be leaning forward. Check their mouth to see if the object is dislodged. If not, wrap your arms around the person, make a fist with one hand and hold this with the other hand, choose a distance between their navel and lower part of their breastbone. Next, pull upwards and inwards sharply several times and check the mouth again.

If this fails get urgent medical care. Hope you’ve learnt some practical steps. Join me tomorrow for more.