An Automated External Defibrillator (AED) is a device that delivers an electrical shock to a victim in cardiac arrest. Public AEDs are becoming increasingly common, and many public buildings and workplaces now have an AED...

Anaphylaxis is a severe life-threatening allergic reaction affecting the entire body. Anaphylactic shock is caused when the individual is exposed to something they are allergic too. Their body responds by releasing large amounts of...

This Basic First Aid Quiz is a great way to test your understanding of key first aid skills. We’ve updated this basic quiz to follow the latest international first aid and CPR guidelines. Work your...

Are you preparing for an upcoming CPR exam or test? Have a go at these CPR questions to test your knowledge of the latest resuscitation council guidelines. We’ve included the explanations and the correct...

A seizure (fit) occurs due to excessive and disorganized electrical activity in our brain. A major seizure occurs when the victim falls to the ground and starts shaking uncontrollably. This is known as a tonic-clonic seizure....

First aid is all about treating injuries and illnesses at home before seeking medical help. If you don’t have a first aid kit available at home you can improvise using common household items. In...

The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) is a scoring system used to assess patients with a reduced level of consciousness. In this blog post, we’ll look at how to calculate a GCS score for a...

Bronchodilators open up constricted airways by relaxing the smooth muscle that lines the airway. It does this mainly by stimulating beta-adrenergic receptors on the smooth muscle. (A drug that stimulates a receptor is called...

Asthma is a condition wherein a person’s airways become narrow, swell up, and end up producing extra mucus. This causes the patient to cough, thereby making it difficult for them to breathe and leading...

If you teach first aid and CPR, you’ll need CPR manikins. As first aid instructors, we need to provide the best quality training possible for our learners. This means using realistic CPR manikins that...

When the human body suffers from an injury or comes in contact with offending agents, such as bacteria, viruses, or toxic chemicals, the immune system gets activated. This is when the immune system sends...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, is a common chronic inflammatory lung disease or a group of progressive lung diseases. It leads to breathing issues and restricted airflow. Individuals who suffer from COPD can...

In this post, we’re going to look at cardiac arrhythmias. What exactly is an arrhythmia? The normal heartbeat is initiated at the sinoatrial (SA) node. An irregular heartbeat is known as an arrhythmia including...

Approximately 4.6 million people in the US are affected by congestive heart failure (CHF). First aiders and first responders may encounter a patient with CHF. In this blog post we’ll look at CHF in...