Ansar checking his unresponsive casualty to see if she is breathing normally.  He’s part way through the DRSABCD process, an essential procedure to find out if a casualty has any life threatening conditions and if immediate first aid is necessary.

DRSABCD stands for:

Danger – always check the danger to you, any bystanders and then the injured person. Make sure you do not put yourself in danger when going to the assistance of another person.

Response – is the person conscious? Do they respond when you talk to them or squeeze their shoulder?

Send for help – call 999. Don’t forget to answer the questions asked by the operator.

Airway – Is the person’s airway clear? Head tilt, chin lift manoeuvre? Are they breathing normally?

If the person is responding, they are conscious and their airway is clear, assess how you can help them with any injury.

If the person is not responding and they are unconscious, you need to check their airway, tilt their head gently back (by lifting their chin) and check for breathing.

Breathing – check for breathing by looking for chest movements (up and down). Listen by putting your ear near to their mouth and nose. Feel for breathing by putting your hand on the lower part of their chest. If the person is unconscious but breathing normally, turn them onto their side in the recovery position. Monitor their breathing until you hand over to the ambulance officers.

CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) – if an adult is unconscious and not breathing normally, make sure they are flat on their back and then place the heel of one hand in the centre of their chest and your other hand on top. Press down firmly and smoothly (compressing to one third of their chest depth – usually 5-6 cm) 30 times. Give two attempts at breaths.

Defibrillator – for unconscious adults who are not breathing, apply an automated external defibrillator (AED) if one is available.