![CPR Instructor Faran and full house of our Twitter friends](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5866.jpg)
CPR Instructor Faran and full house of our Twitter friends
![Joe is practicing tweeting with his barriers](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5868.jpg)
Joe is practicing tweeting with his barriers
![Faran demonstrating CPR techniques](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5869.jpg)
Faran demonstrating CPR techniques
![Faran demonstrating CPR techniques](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5870.jpg)
Faran demonstrating CPR techniques
![Faran demonstrating CPR techniques](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5871.jpg)
Faran demonstrating CPR techniques
![Faran demonstrating back thrusts on someone who is choking](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5874.jpg)
Faran demonstrating back thrusts on someone who is choking
![Demonstrating how to roll someone into the H.A.IN.E.S. Recovery Position](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5877.jpg)
Demonstrating how to roll someone into the H.A.IN.E.S. Recovery Position
![CPR on our dummies](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5889.jpg)
CPR on our dummies
![The rest of the class practices CPR on their dummies](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5896.jpg)
The rest of the class practices CPR on their dummies
![#redcrossCPR hosts Joallore and Sandra. Thank you!](/blogImages/en-CA/2012/11/img_5908.jpg)
#redcrossCPR hosts Joallore and Sandra. Thank you!
I'm the type of person who likes to be prepared. I've got my emergency kit ready and my purse is stocked with bandaids for any scrape, cut, or blister. But when it comes to taking care of my sick grandfather, I never felt confident that I could handle a health emergency with him...or anyone else for that matter.
My part-time job in high school provided First Aid and CPR training for me but I'll be the first to admit that I've forgotten most of the training so I was excited to attend #redcrossCPR - a tweet-up where Canadian Red Cross Twitter friends are trained in CPR. I went to the tweet-up in Toronto, but #redcrossCPR was being hosted in Halifax and St. John's at the same time.
Our instructor, Faran, was really engaging, enthusiastic and made the training fun. We learned how to help someone choking with stomach and back thrusts, how to put someone in the H.A.IN.E.S. Recovery Position, and how to administer CPR and use an AED should we ever encounter a health emergency. Effective bystander CPR can help between when a person stops breathing and when brain damage occurs while you wait for emergency responders to arrive.
Our class passed with flying colours. We came, we tweeted, and we learned CPR. Now that is good use of a Saturday morning!
To see more photos or tweets from #redcrossCPR, check out the Storify here.