Basic Life Support

The route

Lessons are in the order that makes each one easier than the last. Each unit ends with a short quiz.

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   Unit 1

   Introduction to Basic Life Support

   What happens when a heart stops, the chain that brings people back, and how to spot an arrest in ten seconds.
   1. Cardiac Arrest and Basic Life SupportFree A heart attack and a cardiac arrest are not the same thing, and knowing the difference tells you what to do next. 9 min
   3. Chain of Survival Six links, one chain, and survival depends on the weakest of them. 8 min
   4. Scene Safety and Personal Protection A dead rescuer saves nobody, so the first look is for danger, not for the casualty. 8 min
   5. Recognition of Cardiac Arrest Unresponsive, not breathing normally, no definite pulse, and gasping is not breathing. 10 min
   6. Unit 1 quiz5 questions on this unit 6 min
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   Unit 2 Full plan

   Adult Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)

   Push hard, push fast, let the chest come back up, and breathe just enough. The numbers that make CPR work.
   1. High-Quality Chest Compressions Five numbers and one habit turn ordinary chest pressing into compressions that actually move blood. 10 min
   2. Airway Management and Ventilation Open the airway, give one second per breath, watch the chest rise, and then get back on the chest. 9 min
   3. Adult BLS Algorithm for Healthcare Providers Put the pieces together into one smooth algorithm you could run half-asleep on a night shift. 7 min
   4. Respiratory Arrest and Rescue Breathing Some patients still have a heartbeat but have stopped breathing, and they need breaths, not compressions. 9 min
   5. Unit 2 quiz9 questions on this unit 11 min
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   Unit 3 Full plan

   Defibrillation and the Automated External Defibrillator (AED)

   How a defibrillator resets a quivering heart, and how to use one safely on real, messy chests.
   1. Principles of Defibrillation A defibrillator does not jump-start a dead heart; it silences electrical chaos so a normal rhythm can return. 9 min
   2. Use of the Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Switch it on and it talks you through the rest, but you still need to know where the pads go and when to stand clear. 9 min
   3. AED Use in Special Situations Water, hair, patches, pacemakers and small children, and how to adapt without delaying the shock. 9 min
   4. Unit 3 quiz5 questions on this unit 6 min
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   Unit 4 Full plan

   Paediatric Basic Life Support

   Smaller chests, different causes and a few different numbers, including the 2025 change to infant compressions.
   1. Principles of Paediatric Basic Life Support Most children's hearts stop because their breathing failed first, and that changes almost everything you do. 9 min
   2. Child CPR The same rhythm as adult CPR, a smaller push, and a different answer to the question of when to leave and call. 9 min
   3. Infant CPR The two-finger method is gone; in 2025 the heel of one hand and the two-thumb grip took its place. 10 min
   4. Unit 4 quiz7 questions on this unit 9 min
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   Unit 5 Full plan

   Foreign Body Airway Obstruction and the Recovery Position

   Telling a cough from a crisis, five-and-five for every age, and keeping an unconscious airway open.
   1. Recognition of Foreign Body Airway Obstruction A choking person who can cough is helping themselves; one who cannot speak needs you within seconds. 8 min
   2. Foreign Body Airway Obstruction (Choking) in Adults and Children In 2025 the AHA brought back blows into adult choking, alternating with abdominal thrusts. 10 min
   3. Foreign Body Airway Obstruction (Choking) in Infants Face down for back blows, face up for chest thrusts, and never an abdominal thrust under one year. 9 min
   4. Recovery Position An unconscious person who is breathing can still die from their own tongue or vomit, and this simple roll prevents it. 9 min
   5. Unit 5 quiz7 questions on this unit 9 min
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   Unit 6 Full plan

   Resuscitation Teams, Post-Resuscitation Care and Documentation

   How a team turns chaos into a drill, what to do once the heart restarts, and the mistakes that cost lives.
   1. The High-Performance Resuscitation Team Ten people around a bed can be chaos or a well-drilled team, and the difference is roles and closed-loop talk. 9 min
   2. Post-Resuscitation Care and Documentation What happens once the heart restarts, or does not, matters for the patient, the family, the team and the law. 9 min
   3. Common Errors in CPR and Termination of Resuscitation Most failed resuscitations are not short of knowledge but full of small, avoidable errors. 10 min
   4. Unit 6 quiz7 questions on this unit 9 min

Practise and remember