Life-saving move to help a child if they suddenly start choking

Imagine this - you're at home in the evening, enjoying some downtime with a family member.

It could be your mum or dad, sibling or even your child. You're mid-joke when they suddenly suffer a cardiac arrest. They're unresponsive, unconscious, not breathing. Would you know what to do?

Using a defibrillator within the first three minutes of someone going into cardiac arrest can increase their survival chances by up to 80 per cent, reports the Mirror. For every minute that passes after that, the odds decrease by 10 per cent, says Grace Lawson, a lead trainer with St John Ambulance.

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Grace's journey with the charity began in her childhood when she was enrolled as a Badger by her nurse mother, before later joining Cadets. After finishing school, she applied for an apprenticeship and has since climbed the ranks to become a lead trainer. Over the years, Grace has delivered several of the organisation's courses, including first aid, mental health, and fire marshal training.

Despite the variety of courses, Grace often observes similar attitudes among participants. Some arrive disinterested, possibly signed up through their workplaces, while others are eager to learn, sometimes due to tragic experiences where they wished they could have done more.

Regardless of their initial attitude, it's likely that St John Ambulance instils confidence in everyone who walks through their doors by equipping them with life-saving skills. This was evident when I observed a group of participants during a course. Chest pain, head injuries, and seizures were all topics covered on the final day of the first-aid course the Mirror attended. The participants enthusiastically answered every question posed to them.

Grace and her colleague Emma Barker taught each serious topic with skill and charm, using games to engage the group and make each lesson memorable. Here are some of the ways to respond if someone you're with falls ill, according to the experts.

Seizure

Asked: "What should you do if you encounter someone having a seizure?" Grace advised: "First of all, allow them to have their seizure. Make sure they're safe, so clear the area and then you would time it. You would see how long it is going on for and wait for the seizure to stop.

"If you try and intervene it could make the situation worse. So once they've finished their seizure, then we'll move to our primary survey. Check that they are breathing and if they are responsive. If they're not responsive but they are breathing, move them into the recovery position." Call 999 for an ambulance if the seizure is their first ever seizure, they have more than one, or it continues for more than five minutes.

Heart attack

Grace outlined several signs and symptoms of a heart attack, which include being pale, cold, clammy, having ashen skin, experiencing pain down one or both arms, and feeling pain up to the jaw. She noted that women are more likely to experience a dull ache between the shoulders, while men are more likely to feel a dull ache in their chest.

If you're with someone who is experiencing a heart attack, Grace said you should give them 300 milligrams of aspirin and call an ambulance immediately. Calling 999 is "the most important thing", she stressed, and you should "sit them down with their knees slightly raised while you wait for emergency services."

Suspected spinal injury

Spinal injuries can be caused by a number of accidents, including catastrophic falls and sports injuries. Should you suspect someone has a spinal injury, it's important to consider your surroundings and what has happened.

Firstly, "only move them if they are in danger, so if there's a risk to them", said Grace, adding: "For example, if their airway was compromised, you'd have to put them in the recovery position," Otherwise, it is important not to move the casualty. "If you can, leave them where they are and call 999," instructed the pro.

Severed finger

"Always treat the wound first. You want to stem the bleeding as best as possible by applying direct pressure," Grace advised. If you don't have a bandage, Grace said the next best alternative is to use something clean. Pressure must then be applied to the wound, which the casualty can do with their own hand, she added.

Grace has shared some crucial first aid tips, starting with how to handle a severed finger. She advises that once the bleeding is under control, you should place the finger in plastic, such as clingfilm or a plastic bag, then wrap it in cloth like a triangular bandage or normal bandage.

After that, keep the finger cool by placing it into ice or wrapping an ice pack around it. "We wouldn't put it directly on ice because it can impact the ability for that to be put back later in hospital," Grace clarified.

Choking

When it comes to choking, Grace pointed out that contrary to popular belief, fuelled by dramatic scenes on TV and film, abdominal thrusts might not be the best initial response. "Actually, it can cause quite a lot of damage to the casualty," she warned.

Instead, Grace recommends a different approach before resorting to abdominal thrusts, which includes several preliminary steps. "We start by asking them if they are choking just in case it might be something like a severe allergy which has caused their throat to swell or something like that - a different reason for obstruction. So we ask them, are they choking? We would ask them if they can cough to see if they can get it out themselves," she explained.

"If they can't or the coughing is quite absent, then we would support them from the front across the shoulders and administer up to five back blows using the heel of your hand in between the shoulder blades," she continued. "If it still hasn't come out then we do up to five of the abdominal thrusts, and if that hasn't worked, call an ambulance and then just repeat the process, so go back to back blows."

"Going for black blows first is always a better option to start off with and then moving onto abdominal thrusts. It's less invasive and it can still clear the obstruction," she emphasised.

Grace also revealed she does not let her young son walk around while he's eating food, due to the choking risk. "I am a little bit more strict with my son now. Like I don't let him run around with food. He sits in his chair and if he's not eating it, we take it away. He doesn't eat while he's walking around or anything," she explained.

Sharing further advice for parents, one of her teammates warned against 'chubby bunny', the popular children's party game that sees players stuff marshmallows into their mouths. "Because of the heat of the mouth they start to stick together to become one big blob and then you can't breathe," the expert warned.