Primary survey run: stop, check and call

Warm-up for the first aid unit: students jog around a circuit and at each stop perform one step of a victim's primary survey. The body warms up while the order of action in an emergency becomes automatic.

How to play

1. Circuit with five cones and a card at each one: scene safety, responsiveness, airway, breathing and calling 112 (the emergency number in Spain; 911 in the US) (1 min).
2. Easy jog in pairs between cones; at each one, read the card and act out the step on the partner lying on a mat (4 min).
3. Second lap without reading the cards, recalling the order and saying out loud what is being checked (2 min).
4. Third lap at a slightly brisker pace, switching roles between victim and first aider (2 min).
5. Group review of the full sequence with one sentence per step (1 min).

Rules

• To open the airway, simulate the head-tilt chin-lift without pressing on the neck.
• No real chest compressions on a partner: only show where the hands go.
• In the simulated call, nobody actually dials the emergency number.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: do the circuit in a wheelchair and always act as the first aider giving instructions.
• Hearing impairment: cards with pictograms, and explain that the emergency number can also take text messages.
• Students anxious about touch: use a manikin or a rolled-up mat as the victim.

Learning goals

• Warm up the body with intermittent easy running.
• Memorize the order of a victim's primary survey.
• Say each check clearly out loud as a first aider would.

Equipment for a class of 25

• cones: 5
• cards: 5
• mats: 5

Teacher tip

Mention that 112 in Spain also accepts text messages for Deaf people. If you have a CPR manikin, put it at the last cone.

More activities like this

More warm-ups for High School