History

• The year 2010 marks the 50th anniversary of the development of CPR. According to the American Heart Association, "In 1960, a group of resuscitation pioneers combined mouth-to-mouth breathing with chest compressions to create ... CPR. This action, when provided immediately after a sudden cardiac arrest, can double -- even triple -- a victim's chance of survival."
  
  

Importance

• The American Heart Association reports "about 80 percent of all out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occur in private residential settings, so being trained to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation can mean the difference between life and death for a loved one."
  
  Keep in mind that "if bystander CPR is not provided, a sudden cardiac arrest victim's chances of survival fall 7 percent to 10 percent for every minute of delay until defibrillation. Few attempts at resuscitation are successful if CPR and defibrillation are not provided within minutes of collapse."
  
  

Get Certified

• Courses in CPR certification vary in length and breadth depending on your needs. Are you a health care professional? Are you outside of the health care profession but need a credentialed course for job requirements? Are you looking for full first aid training or simply CPR? Or are you just looking to learn the basics?
  
  Contact the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross to find an appropriate course in your area.
  
  

Get the Materials

• It is possible to learn CPR and/or first aid skills through online courses or books.
  
  Look for materials from a well-respected organization. For example, the American Red Cross offers an online presentation that covers what to do if someone is choking or needs CPR.
  
  The American Heart Association's textbooks come with DVDs providing video clips. Their Friends & Family CPR Anytime program is "designed to teach basic CPR skills in just 22 minutes to people who don't participate in traditional CPR courses."
  
  

Be Prepared

• Learning how to use CPR properly is important, but it's equally important to be prepared to use it in a real-life situation. Reading a book is vastly different from using the technique in an actual emergency.
  
  Take the class until you are comfortable with it. If one Saturday session isn't enough to give you confidence in your abilities, take another one or keep a book on hand so you can refresh your memory anytime.
  
  Stay current. Techniques change, so try to take a class every few years to stay abreast of any changes in the field.