NASCO
founder/president John Hunsucker PhD
traning lifeguards
"These so-called medical experts.
Screw 'em."
Why does NASCO
teach lifeguards to perform
abdominal thrusts (the Heimlich
maneuver) on drowning victims?
SUMMARY:
Drowning experts and every major first aid organization
unanimously agree that performing abdominal thrusts
(the Heimlich maneuver) on near-drowning victims has
no proven value and its use may result in serious
injury or death.
Nevertheless, a Texas company called the National
Aquatic Safety Company (NASCO) is training lifeguards at
private waterparks and municipal pools around the
country to perform the procedure.
Use
of the Heimlich Maneuver First in Near-drowning
Victims, American Red Cross, August 2005
Despite consensus, Henry
J. Heimlich MD, who developed the maneuver to
relieve choking victims, contends that in cases of
near-drowning the Heimlich maneuver should be the
first procedure attempted, before CPR. Dr.
Heimlich contends that water gets into and
obstructs the airway of near-drowning victims and
that his maneuver will relieve this obstruction.
American Red Cross position: The American
Red Cross follows the the American Heart
Association (AHA) Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary
Resuscitation (CPR) and Emergency Cardiac Care
(ECC) guidelines which state that if a victim is
not breathing, the rescuer should initiate CPR
immediately...These AHA CPR/ECC guidelines are
supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics,
the American College of Cardiology, the American
College of Emergency Physicians and the Institute
of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences.
For more information reference the full Advisory
Council on First Aid and Safety statement.
Adult
Basic Life Support: 2010 American Heart
Association Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary
Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care,
Circulation, December 2010
Pediatric Submersion
Injuries: New Definitions and Protocols by
Charles Stewart, MD, FAAEM, FACEP, Pediatric
Emergency Medicine Practice, April 2006
There
is no evidence that water acts as an obstructive
foreign body. Maneuvers to relieve foreign-body
airway obstruction (FBAO) are not recommended for
drowning victims because such maneuvers are not
necessary and they can cause injury, vomiting,
aspiration, and delay of CPR.
Dr.
Heimlich, who advocates the use of the
“Heimlich” maneuver to express water out of the
lungs, expounds a notable exception to the
policy of no “chest drainage maneuvers”. There
are no data to support the use of a Heimlich
maneuver in a drowning victim who does not have
a particulate matter foreign body obstruction,
and recently, the case reports that served as
the basis for recommendations for the use of the
Heimlich maneuver, have been debunked.
Care must be taken to prevent aspiration of
gastric contents since vomiting is very common
with this maneuver. It is imperative that no
time be wasted with this or other maneuvers.
Further, the use of abdominal thrusts on
near-drowning victims has reportedly been associated
with dozens of such poor outcome cases, including
children. For examples, see my web page, Some of the victims -
casualties of the Heimlich maneuver for drowning
rescue.
Despite this
body of evidence, lifeguards at "some of
the largest waterparks in the country" are being
trained to perform abdominal thrusts (the Heimlich
maneuver) on near-drowning victims by the
Houston-area National Aquatic Safety Company
(NASCO), "the third largest lifeguard
certification agency for waterparks in the U.S."
according to the
company's website.
According to a 2007 Houston Press cover story, here's how NASCO founder/president
John Hunsucker addressed the matter:
"These
so-called medical experts. Screw 'em."
From An Open Letter To
Our Clients, The Public and The Press
on NASCO's website (accessed 11/26/11):