Basic life support (BLS) is a level of medical care which is used for patients with life-threatening illnesses or injuries until the patient can be given full medical care. It can be provided by trained medical personnel, including EMTs, and by laypersons who have received BLS training. BLS is generally used in the pre-hospital setting, and can be provided without medical equipment.Basic life support consists of a number of life-saving techniques focused on the medicine "ABC"s of pre-hospital emergency care:
- Airway: the protection and maintenance of a clear passageway for gases (principally oxygen and carbon dioxide) to pass between the lungs and the outside of the body
- Breathing: inflation and deflation of the lungs (respiration) via the airway
- Circulation: providing an adequate blood supply to the body, especially critical organs, so as to deliver oxygen to all cells and remove carbon dioxide, via the perfusion of blood throughout the body.
As continuing medical research often changes the way many of these procedures are administered, our education and training department is on the forefront of the latest advancements to ensure that our EMT's and transport staff are specially trained in what is currently believed to be the most effective BLS techniques known at this time.
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