Your CPR instructor didn't leave you thinking you could perform the procedure on your own. Your unconscious friend isn't inspiring much confidence in you, either.
Time to bring in the big guns: the naked Asian man from The Hangover.
The American Heart Association has taken an unorthodox approach to urging people to perform CPR with a public service announcement.
In it, a group of middle-aged suburbanites are engaged in a rousing game of charades when the guy gesturing wildly collapses. Two buxom blondes bound into the room. One calls 911 and the other begins chest compressions on the man as that disco anthem Stayin' Alive plays in the background.
Oh, right, Naked Asian man from The Hangover (Ken Jeong, also a medical doctor) is there. In his finest white leisure suit from the '70s. Telling you that yes, even somewhat sloppy, amateur CPR is better than just standing around. Place your hands on the centre of the person's chest and start pumping to the beat of Stayin' Alive, he instructs.
"Disco can save lives," he says. Perhaps it's time for a similarly goofy, if not attention-getting approach here in Canada.
A 2010 poll by the Heart and Stroke Foundation found that 40 per cent of Canadians trained in CPR said they'd do it in an emergency situation
The leading reason holding people back? A lack of confidence in their skill level. They assumed doing nothing was better than doing chest compressions incorrectly. The Heart and Stroke Foundation wants to change that. They've adopted the same stance as the American Heart Association: instead of fretting over the number of breaths or timing compressions, they urge people to simply dive in and "push fast and push hard."
Oh, and of course, keep that disco hit in your head as you push to keep the right rhythm.
Would you perform CPR in an emergency situation, even without proper training?
Editor's Note: Ken Jeong is a medical doctor. This blog post has been updated to reflect that information.
Dakshana Bascaramurty