If your child is not responding to you and you think they are unresponsive, ask loudly ‘What’s happened? or say to them: ‘Open your eyes!’. Place one hand on their shoulder and tap gently. If they still do not respond, it’s likely that they’re unresponsive.
Open their airway and check to see if they are breathing normally by looking for chest movement, listening for the sounds of normal breathing and seeing if you can feel their breaths on your cheek.
If they are not breathing, you need to start CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation – a combination of chest compressions and rescue breaths) straight away.
If someone is with you, get them to call 999 or 112 for emergency help.
If you’re on your own, you need to give one minute’s worth of CPR – cardiopulmonary resuscitation - before you call for help. This involves giving chest compressions and rescue breaths to keep the child’s circulation going.
Kneel down beside the child on the floor, level with their chest.
Give five initial rescue breaths before starting the sequence of 30 chest compressions and two rescue breaths.
• Place the heel of one hand towards the end of their breastbone, in the centre of their chest, making sure you keep the fingers off the ribs.
• Lean over the child, with your arm straight, pressing down vertically on the breastbone, and press the chest down by at least one-third of its depth.
• Release the pressure without removing your hand from their chest. Allow the chest to come back up fully – this is one compression.
Repeat this 30 times, at a rate of about twice a second or the speed of the song ‘Staying Alive’.
Now give two rescue breaths.
Release the pressure without removing your hand from their chest. Allow the chest to come back up fully – this is one compression.
Repeat this 30 times, at a rate of about twice a second or the speed of the song ‘Staying Alive’.
Now give two rescue breaths.