Basic Life Support (BLS)

Basic Life Support (BLS)

Comprises the following elements:

• Initial Assessment (Primary Survey)
• Airway Maintenance
• Initial Rescue Breaths
• Chest compressions and rescue breathing (CPR)

When an infant or child is unresponsive or unconscious we need to establish if they are breathing or not breathing. This is achieved by opening and maintaining the airway.

Opening the airway (Infant and Child)

• Make sure the face is not obstructed.
• Using the head-tilt-chin-lift method (as shown in the image) gently place 1 hand/2 fingers on the childs forehead, or in the case of an infant one finger underneath their chin, and carefully extend their airway. You must ensure that an infants airway is not over-extended.