Choking

Lesson objectives:

• Learn common causes of choking.
• Identify a person who is choking.

1.  Discuss:
   1. What is choking?
      1. When you breath, air goes from your mouth or nose into your lungs.
      2. Choking is when something gets stuck somewhere between your mouth and lungs.
   2. What are some causes of choking?
      1. Eating while talking or laughing.
      2. Trying to swallow something that has not been chewed enough.
      3. Swallowing something that isn’t food.
      4. Medical or dental problems which prevent someone from chewing or swallowing something properly.
2. Children under 5 years old are at a higher risk of choking.
   1. Ask the participants “What are some choking hazards for kids?”
   2. Ex: hot dogs, peanut butter, gum, etc.
3. Identification:
   1. People who are choking often look surprised or panicked.
   2. They may also be clutching at their neck with one or both hands.
   3. They will have trouble breathing, such as coughing, wheezing, or they may not be able to breath at all.
   4. If you see someone who could be choking, first ask them if they are choking. They may be coughing for any number of reasons.
4. Treatment:
   1. If they are choking, ask them for permission to help them.
      1. If they say yes, continue treatment described here.
      2. If they say no, wait until they change their mind, or become unconscious. Provide care for unconscious choking as described later in this section.
   2. If they say they are choking, but they are still coughing, speaking, or breathing, encourage them to keep coughing.
      1. Explain:
         1. The coughing is their body’s attempt to dislodge the object.
         2. Anything you do while they are coughing could make it worse.
         3. If they can still cough, speak, or breath, then they can get at least a little air into their lungs.
   3. If they stop coughing and can’t breath at all anymore:
      1. Call 911
      2.   Alternate 5 back blows and 5 abdominal thrusts.
   4. Demonstrate:
      1. Back Blows:
         1. Stand beside and behind the person with your arm wrapped around them.
         2. Lean the person over.
         3. Give 5 firm blows between the shoulder blades with the heel of your hand.
         4. Explain: each of these back blows is a separate attempt to dislodge the object they are choking on.
         5. Explain: if the person is too tall for you to do back blows properly, have them get on their knees.
      2. Abdominal Thrusts:
         1. Reposition yourself behind the person with your front foot between the person’s feet.
         2. Find the navel with two fingers of one hand.
         3. Make a fist with the other hand and place it above your two fingers, with the thumb side against the stomach.
         4. Cover your fist with your other hand.
         5. Push in and up 5 times.
      3. Repeat giving 5 back blows and 5 abdominal thrusts until the person can cough, speak, breath, or becomes unconscious.
         1. If they begin coughing, cease back blows and abdominal thrusts and let them cough.
         2. If they become unconscious:
            1. Lower them gently to the ground if you can.
            2. Call 911 if you haven’t already done so.
            3. Begin CPR if you are trained. Start with compressions.
   5. Practice:
      1. Have participants split into pairs to practice the proper positioning of back blows and abdominal thrusts.
      2. Be sure to tell the students not to actually do back blows or abdominal thrusts. Actually doing back blows are abdominal thrusts could harm the participants or cause them to vomit.