How long should you spend checking for breathing?

Before starting cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) it is important to assess whether the patient is breathing normally.

In order to do this, you should open the airway and check for breathing using the ‘look, listen, feel’ technique:

– Look for the chest rising and falling

– Listen for breath sounds

– Feel for breath on the side of your cheek

You should spend no longer than ten seconds checking for breathing before commencing CPR. Spending more time could result in delayed CPR.

Want to test your CPR knowledge? Why not have a go at one of our CPR practice tests!