Your life in the hands of trained medical personnel...
RBF esquire has reminded me of a story I heard from the instructor on a first aid course I was at about a fortnight ago. He was discussing how to perform CPR correctly, and specifically the timing of the chest compressions. He said that ideally you should be compressing at a rate of a hundred compressions per minute.

He went on to describe one unpleasant car accident he was at where he witnessed a trained paramedic performing CPR on a stricken victim. Humming "Nellie the elephant" under his breath to keep in time.


Said paramedic will be known as "Nellie" until the day he retires.
( MatJ LOOK, Sat 3 Jul 2010, 19:08, 7 replies)

Apparently 'Nellie the Elephant' used to be very commonly taught as a way of keeping time.

More recently the Bee Gees and Staying Alive is used (I kid you not)
(jono_h, Sat 3 Jul 2010, 19:53, closed)

Nellie
Still is used AFAIK.

Gives 15 beats/compressions at the right tempo.
( daikoku has been on a ragga tip since, Sat 3 Jul 2010, 20:55, closed)

I know
I just find the idea funny.

Incidentally, they recommend 30 beats and two breaths now, on the grounds that it increases blood pressure more before adding the oxygen.
( MatJ LOOK, Sat 3 Jul 2010, 21:00, closed)

They do indeed
and do not stop CPR except for those breaths, or defibrillation. This means you, you 'orrible little man. Keep those hands where I can see them.
( Undercovercarrot got done for gross misconduct on..., Sun 4 Jul 2010, 14:39, closed)

St John's Ambulance
...used Nellie when they taught me First Aid 4 years ago, and last year for my refresher.

They did also mention Another One Bites The Dust, but I'd rather watch someone die in agony than subject myself to humming Queen.
( shinyshinyscalp less a man, more a way of life, Tue 6 Jul 2010, 15:15, closed)

Other songs also fit...
Such as ABBA's "Dancing Queen".

Or my personal favorite: Queen's "Another One Bites the Dust".
(Merrep, Sat 3 Jul 2010, 23:22, closed)

"staying alive"
is also used here :) "ah ah ah ah staying alive staying alive" :) never out loud of course ...
(zenmeban thinks the weather could be better, Sun 4 Jul 2010, 9:40, closed)