i need to recycle cpr and first aid courses yearly because i'm a diving instructor and it changes every so often...
last update i heard was that because checking a pulse is pretty difficult for an untrained person it is removed from the cpr process and is completely replaced by checking for breathing because
1: if there is no pulse the person also wont be breathing (or at least not for long)
2: if there is no breathing and the victim is unconscious in most of the cases there also won't be a pulse and even if there is, the breathing might be stopped by for example a foreign object and commencing chest compression will most likely evacuate this object and enable normal breathing again ....
so unless you're a trained professional, check for breathing ....
how to check for breathing: put the victim flat on his/her back, remove clothing from chest and put one of your ears close to the face of the victim to hear and feel breathing while your looking down the chest of the victim to see if it is rising and lowering as you'd expect with normal breathing ....
remember that a slow breathing cycle can take several seconds between breaths so take your time to verify ...
