This year, an annual Netcare tradition of teaching lifesaving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills was dedicated to the Department of Community Safety, Directorate of Traffic Management and the South African Police Service (SAPS).
The week-long series of CPR workshops brought together Netcare emergency department staff, SAPS and Community Safety officials from across the country to build critical resuscitation skills.
“We congratulate the 702 members who took part in the CPR workshops to learn the skills needed to save a life in a medical emergency,” says Mande Toubkin, Netcare’s general manager of emergency, trauma, transplant and corporate social investment.
More than 9 000 people have received Netcare CPR training since the inception of this annual initiative in 2023, which was launched in honour of Mandela Day. These initiatives aim to improve early access to CPR for people experiencing cardiac arrest, as early CPR significantly improves the chances of survival.
| Netcare emergency departments recently teamed up with law enforcement and community safety officials for a week of CPR workshops. Douglasdale SAPS members are pictured learning infant and child CPR techniques. |
Officers are often among the first to arrive at the scene of an emergency. If a person is unresponsive and not breathing or their heart is not beating, there is no time to wait for an ambulance. The patient needs help immediately and good quality CPR improves outcomes.
“You never know when someone’s life could depend on CPR. In an emergency, it may be a member of your family, a colleague or a member of the public who needs your help. In another scenario, your life could depend on someone nearby knowing how to perform CPR for you,” Toubkin says.
In previous years, Netcare has partnered with parkruns, schools, businesses and hospitals to reach various communities and age groups with vital CPR skills.
CPR is performed in medical emergencies when a person’s heart is no longer beating following a heart attack, drowning, electric shock, medication reaction or drug overdose. Hands-only CPR does not require mouth-to-mouth rescue breaths, can be effectively performed by bystanders who witness a teenager or adult suddenly collapse and can make the difference between life and death.
| The CPR workshops at the Gauteng Department of Community Safety’s head office, where lifesaving skills were transferred to members on the front lines of serving the community. (Photo credit: Gauteng Department of Community Safety) |
“We thank all the members of the Department of Community Safety, Directorate of Traffic Management, and SAPS, who gave their time to learn these valuable skills and make a lasting impact far beyond the workshops,” she says.
Contact Netcare 911 directly via the Netcare app, or call 082 911 for assistance with telephone guided CPR while waiting for paramedics to arrive.
Print and keep visible
Download and print the Resuscitation Council of Southern Africa’s guidelines for basic life support CPR here: https://resus.co.za/back-office/uploads/pdf/pdf_20251205_073204.pdf. Keep a copy handy in your office, your home, community centre or club: it could save a life.
Hands-only CPR can be performed if you do not have a protection device for your mouth.
Hands-only CPR steps for adults
- Call for help: Contact emergency services (such as Netcare 911 via the Netcare app or on 082 911). Have someone fetch an automated external defibrillator (AED) if one is nearby.
- Position your hands: Place the heel of one hand in the centre of the chest with the other hand on top, interlocking your fingers.
- Maintain posture: Keep your arms straight, locking your elbows, and position your shoulders directly over your hands.
- Push hard and fast: Compress the chest to a depth of 5 cm to 6 cm in an adult.
- Keep the rhythm: Push at a rate of 100 to 120 compressions per minute to match the tempo of the Bee Gees' song "Stayin' Alive".
- Do not stop: Continue compressions continuously until emergency responders take over, an AED is ready to use, or the person shows clear signs of life.
Learning how to do CPR is one of the most valuable skills you will ever learn.
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Notes to editors
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