CPR actually WORKS!

[slc1984]

I have been renewing my CPR every couple of years since I was a lifeguard in high school. Every single time I am sitting in the class I'm thinking, "does CPR (out of the hospital) really help"? Someone always asks, and the stats are not so hot. Even the instructors say it rarely helps. It does help the person who is performing the CPR before medical help arrives feel like they are doing something however, which I guess is good.

This past week however, I had the horrible experience of watching my 10 year old neighbor (my 9 year old daughters first crush) being loaded into an ambulance after he had hung himself in his room. His dad found him with no breathing and no pulse. He started CPR and now, a short 4 days later, his dad is putting up videos on youtube of his amazing kid in the hospital trying to do hopscotch with his PT team! He has a very long road of recovery ahead of him, but I am so happy to know that even if the odds aren't great for general public CPR, even one in a million is worth it! Encourage everyone you know to learn it!:)

[StudentForever77]

Great story...thanks for sharing! :-)

[dansamy]

Wow! What is our world like that 10 year olds are attempting suicide?

Happy to hear that there was a good outcome.

[kp1987]

Wow so happy yet so sad

Praying for that boy must be very sad to hang him self thank you god for allowing him to stay here with us

1 out of a million is better than 0 out of a million so if CPR can save one young boys life then it's worth learning!!

[BSN-to-MSN, ADN, BSN, RN]

CPR works most of the time. The class I go to every 2 years is taught at the local fire department by instructor who is an actual paramedic. He tells us different situations that he's been in and is very passionate about what he does. Once, he came to scene where there was a nurse performing CPR... She did a great job, he said, although she has never done it before in her life. Proper training every 2 years also works!

[hjh5673]

I teach the lifeguard class and have for many years. It is my understanding that cpr may not restart the heart but it improves the victims chances of survival for when ems does arrive

[eatmysoxRN, ASN, RN]

I think the quality of chest compressions has a lot to do with poor stats. I think a lot of times people don't push hard enough or allow for recoil. Of course ACLS needs to be pretty spot on too. One life even out of a thousand saved makes it worth it though.

[sealford]

Now I have that song "How to Save a Life" in my head. :) My sister, a 23 year old 4th year medical student committed suicide in April. Had I been there at the time, I would have done CPR until my own body felt as if it would die from exhaustion, and then I'd do some more. This story made me cry so hard, because I am so happy that the kid made it. I think that when a person has to do CPR, even if for the first time, their adrenaline takes over and they are able to do things they never thought themselves capable of. Most people say to themselves, "oh, I'm going to forget all of the steps if I ever had to do it," but oftentimes the will to save a life takes over. What a wonderful story.:)

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

Cardiac arrest in children is most often related to airway obstruction and is more easily remedied when airway is opened and breathing restored. Cardiac arrest in adults is more often related to intrinsic cardiac disease and harder to fix. The survival rates in children and adults reflect these differences.

Glad the boy is awake; now for the reason a ten-year-old hangs himself. Poor baby.

[T-Bird78]

Prayers for the boy for his recovery, both physically and mentally. I lost a friend at age 16 to suicide and it's horrible. Also prayers for your child as they're supporting him and scared and wondering what they did wrong to make the 10-year-old try that. Glad there's a good outcome.