Expert Witness Blog
In Standard for Technical Rescue, rescue expert witness Gerald M. Dworkin, Lifesaving Resources Inc., writes:
If lifeguards are trained in CPR and AED for the Professional Rescuer, then it would be negligent not to provide them with the equipment used within those training programs, namely AEDs and Bag-Valve-Mask Resuscitators, among other things. Drowning is a hypoxic event. The only effective way to treat hypoxia in a victim of respiratory and/or cardiac distress or arrest while waiting for the arrival of EMS personnel is to provide positive pressure ventilation (PPV) using a personal resuscitation mask or an appropriately sized bag-valve-mask (BVM) resuscitator along with supplemental oxygen administration. While the use of a personal resuscitation mask provides for the administration of 16 percent oxygen from atmospheric air, the use of a bag-valve-mask will provide the patient with 21 percent oxygen from atmospheric air. And, by attaching an oxygen tank and regulator flowing oxygen at 15 liters per minute, the rescuer will then be providing the patient with 100 percent oxygen.
Read more: www.lifesaving.com.