BASIC LIFE SUPPORT

( BLS )

Basic Life Support (BLS) is a

level of medical care which is used
for patients with life threatening
illness or injury until the patient can
be given full medical care.
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• BLS can be provided by trained medical
personnel, including emergency medical
technicians, and by laypersons who have
received BLS training. It is generally used
in the pre-hospital setting and can be
provided without medical equipment.

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• An important advance in providing
BLS is the availability of the automated
external defibrillator or AED, which
can be used to defibrillation or delivery.
This improves survival outcomes in
cardiac arrest cases.

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AUTOMATED EXTERNAL
DEFIBRILLATOR

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 WHAT IS AN AED
• An automated external
defibrillator or AED is a portable
electronic device that automatically
diagnoses the potentially life threatening
cardiac arrhythmias of ventricular
fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia
in a patient, and is able to treat them through
defibrillation, the application of electrical
therapy which stops the arrhythmia, allowing
the heart to reestablish an effective rhythm.
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• BLS consists of a number of life-saving
techniques focused on the medicine “ABC’s” of
pre-hospital emergency care:
 AIRWAY: the protection and maintenance of a
clear passageway for gases (oxygen and
carbon dioxide) to pass between the lungs
and outside of the body. This will include
maintaining optimal angles or possible insertion
of oral or nasal adjuncts to keep the airway
unblocked.

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 BREATHING
Inflation and Deflation of the lungs
(respiration) via the airway.
This may include artificial respiration,
often assisted by emergency oxygen.

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CIRCULATION:
• Provision of an adequate blood supply to the
body esp. critical organs, so as to deliver
oxygen to all cells and remove carbon
dioxide, via the perfusion of blood
throughout.
• This may include bleeding control or
Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) to
manually stimulate the heart and assist its
pumping action.

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ABC

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• BLS also typically includes
considerations of patient transport such
as various forms of immobilization to
prevent additional injury including cervical
collars, splinting limbs and full body
splints (backboards).

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Cervical collars

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Limb Splints/Full Body Splints
(Backboards)

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 ADULT BLS SEQUENCE

• Ensure that the scene is safe.

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• Assess victim’s LOC ( Level of Consciousness)
ask “are you okay?”
check responsiveness to pain

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• Activate the local EMS – call 115

• AED, if available, should be retrieved

and prepared.

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• If victim has no suspected cervical spine
trauma- use the head-tilt/ chin-lift
maneuver.
• If with suspected trauma- open airway
with jaw-thrust technique

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• Assess airway for foreign object
obstructions.

• If visible – use finger-sweep technique

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• LOOK, LISTEN and FEEL FOR
BREATHING FOR AT LEAST 5
SECONDS AND NO MORE THAN 15
SECONDS

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• IF BREATHING NORMALLY-
PLACE IN RECOVERY POSITION,
MONITORED AND TRANSPORTED..

• DO NOT CONTINUE THE BLS

SEQUENCE…

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• IF NOT BREATHING NORMALLY
/ ARREST WITNESSED BEFORE
ASSESSMENT – IMMEDIATE
DEFIBRILLATION IS INDICATED

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• Administer 2 artificial ventilations
using mouth- to- mouth technique /
mouth- to –mask technique or a bag
– valve – mask.
• Verify if the chest rises/ falls
• IF NOT – Reposition ( i.e. re-open the
airway)

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• Mouth-to-Mouth Resuscitation
• Mouth-to-Mouth-and-Nose Resuscitation on a Child
Under Age 8 or on an Infant
•
• Place the child on a hard, flat surface.

• Look into the mouth and throat to ensure that the

airway is clear. If an object is present, try to sweep it
out with your fingers. If unsuccessful and the object is
blocking the airway, apply the Heimlich maneuver (see
p. 1205). If vomiting occurs, turn the child onto his or
her side and sweep out the mouth with two fingers.

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23
Mouth-to-mouth resuscitation

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• IF Ventilation is still unsuccessful –
• Begin chest compressions, stopping
every 30 compressions – re check
airway for obstructions, removing any
found, re attempt ventilation.

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• IF ventilations are successful:
 Assess presence of a pulse at carotid artery
If with pulse – continue artificial
ventilations at appropriate rate and transport
immediately
If no pulse – begin CPR at a ratio of
30:2 compressions to ventilations at 100
compression / min.

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• AFTER 5 cycles of CPR, REPEAT
BLS protocol –
Assess patient’s airway
Check for spontaneous breathing
Check for spontaneous pulse.

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• IF AED is available after 5 cycles of
CPR, it should be attached, activated and
defibrillation should be performed
• IF DEFIBRILLATION is performed –
5 more cycles of CPR should be
immediately repeated before
reassessment.

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• BLS PROTOCOLS continue
until:
The patient regains a pulse
Rescuer is relieved by another rescuer of
equivalent or higher training
Rescuer is too physically tired to continue
CPR
The patient is pronounced dead by a medical
doctor

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–REMINDERS:
• At the end of 5 cycles of CPR, always
perform defibrillation AED, repeat
assessment before doing another 5
cycles
• CPR continues indefinitely until patient
is revived, until caregiver is relieved or
discharged by higher medical authority

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• CPR CYCLE IS OFTEN
ABBREVIATED AS 30:2 ( 30
Compressions, 2 ventilations or
breaths)
• Note : CPR for infants and children
uses a 15:2 cycle when 2 rescuers are
performing CPR ( but still uses a 30:2 if
there is only 1 rescuer

joy @victoriavn
05122010
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