The Lifesaving Skills Every Person Should Know
Two weeks ago, my cousin’s 2-year-old son choked on a mushroom. The firemen took 6 minutes to arrive, the ambulance 20, and his heart didn't start beating again for 45 minutes. His mother, a midwife, had recently taken a refresher CPR course and performed it relentlessly until help arrived. He was placed in a medically induced coma and spent a week in the hospital, but because CPR kept blood flowing to his brain and body while he was unconscious and not breathing, he made a full recovery. He’s back home, playing like nothing happened.
I have a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes as I write this, thinking about what they just endured.
I was an Emergency Medical Technician as a teenager. One summer, I took Basic Life Support (BLS) training and then joined a volunteer rescue squad, responding to calls every eight nights. I saw so much. I helped so many people. But now, 20 years later, I don’t think I would have known what to do if my own child had choked on a mushroom.
That feeling of helplessness propelled me into action. I organized a first aid course this week, and now I feel so much more confident in my ability to recognize and respond to medical emergencies. Sarah, our instructor, an EMT and a mum herself, teaches group classes—mainly for parents—right in their homes. She came prepared with slides, mannequins, and a wealth of knowledge. She took the time to answer all of our questions, stretching what was supposed to be a three-hour class into four and a half.
I wrote an article covering everything I learned, which Sarah has reviewed. It’s long but thorough, and I truly believe that by reading it, you’ll gain confidence too.
For me, the biggest takeaway was understanding the reasoning behind each step. Because in an emergency—especially when the victim is someone I love—I know panic could paralyze me.
There are two key questions to ask yourself:
- Is the person conscious or unconscious?
- Are they breathing or not breathing?
From there, you’ll know what to do:
- Conscious & Breathing → No emergency.
- Conscious & Not Breathing → Airway obstruction (choking). If they’re coughing, encourage them to keep coughing. If they go silent, perform alternating back blows and chest compressions on an infant or the Heimlich manoeuver and back blows on a toddler through adult. Time is critical — it is only a matter of seconds or minutes until the person loses consciousness. These moments are precious, this is the only emergency situation where if you are alone you will do this intervention before calling for help.
- Unconscious & Breathing → Recovery position. Hold an infant in your arms with their chin supported and airway open. For a child or adult, lay them on their side to prevent choking.
- Unconscious & Not Breathing → Perform CPR immediately. If they aren’t breathing, their heart isn’t beating. You need to do its job. Chest compressions keep blood (and oxygen) flowing to vital organs. Without oxygen, brain damage can occur in as little as four minutes.
“Immediate CPR can double or triple the chances of survival after cardiac arrest.”
— American Heart Association
“Globally, cardiac arrest claims more lives than colorectal cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, influenza, pneumonia, auto accidents, HIV, firearms, and house fires combined.”
— American Heart Association
If that’s not a call to action, I don’t know what is. As Sarah reminded us: It’s better to do something imperfectly than to do nothing at all.
If you’re in the Geneva area, I can’t recommend her enough. Her website is here, her email is sarah@agirpoursauver.ch, her number is +41 79 874 2825. Get in touch with her, today.
You can do this,
Erica
