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Practical Skills

The Recovery Position and Serious Emergencies

Ages 10–14 25 min read Intermediate

The recovery position is used when someone is unconscious but breathing. It keeps their airway clear and prevents them from choking on vomit or saliva. Along with recognising heart attack and stroke, this completes your essential first aid knowledge.

The Recovery Position

Used when: the person is unconscious but breathing normally.

  1. Kneel beside the person.
  2. Place their nearest arm at a right angle to their body (palm up).
  3. Bring the far arm across their chest and hold the back of their hand against their nearest cheek.
  4. With your other hand, bend their far knee up.
  5. Gently roll them toward you by pulling on the bent knee.
  6. Adjust the top leg so knee and hip are at right angles.
  7. Tilt the head back to keep the airway open. Adjust the hand under the cheek.
  8. Monitor breathing continuously until help arrives.

Recognising a Heart Attack

Signs include:

  • Pain, pressure, or tightness in the chest (may spread to arm, jaw, neck, or back)
  • Shortness of breath
  • Nausea, dizziness, cold sweat
  • Women may have different symptoms: fatigue, back pain, or jaw pain without typical chest pain

Action: Call 000. Have the person sit down and rest. If they have aspirin and aren't allergic, have them chew 300mg. Wait for the ambulance.

Recognising a Stroke — FAST

  • Face — Has their face dropped on one side?
  • Arms — Can they raise both arms?
  • Speech — Is their speech slurred or confused?
  • Time — Call 000 immediately. Every minute matters.

Stroke treatment is time-critical. Clot-dissolving drugs must be given within hours. The sooner treatment begins, the better the outcome.

What You've Learned

Through this course, you now know:

  • DRSABCD — the universal emergency response framework
  • How and when to call 000
  • Treatment for burns, cuts, sprains, nosebleeds, bites, and choking
  • CPR and AED use
  • The recovery position
  • How to recognise heart attack and stroke

These skills could save the life of a family member, friend, or stranger. Knowing first aid is one of the most valuable things you can do for the people around you.

Tonight's Question

"Can everyone put someone in the recovery position? Let's practise on each other right now."

It takes 30 seconds to learn and could save a life.

Family First Aid Day

  1. Review everything from this course: DRSABCD, calling 000, burns/cuts/sprains, choking, CPR, recovery position.
  2. Quiz each other on each topic.
  3. Practise the recovery position on each other.
  4. Discuss: in an emergency at home, what would each person's role be?
  5. Commit: book a hands-on first aid course as a family within the next 3 months.

Go Further

  • Course: First aid course — the single best follow-up action from this entire subject.
  • Website: Stroke Foundation (strokefoundation.org.au) — learn the FAST test.
  • Research: What is the "chain of survival" concept in emergency medicine?
  • Question: Should every household be legally required to have a first aid kit and at least one trained first aider?

What We Simplified

  • This course is an introduction. It cannot replace hands-on training with a qualified instructor.
  • Every emergency is different. Real situations are messier, scarier, and more complex than text descriptions. Training builds the confidence to act.
  • First aid saves lives — but it has limits. First aid keeps someone alive until professional help arrives. It's not a substitute for emergency medical services.

Sources

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