Checking someone’s level of consciousness and responsiveness is an essential first aid skill. Within moments of arriving on the scene of an emergency, you may need to determine if the injured person can respond normally. This assessment helps guide your next actions to provide appropriate care.
In this article, we will walk through a simple, effective method for checking responsiveness. Following these steps will help you understand a person’s medical status and decide if they require immediate emergency assistance. Let’s get started.
Why Check Responsiveness?
The primary goal of checking responsiveness is to gauge a person’s level of consciousness after an injury or incident. An unresponsive individual is a medical emergency that needs prompt attention. Some key reasons to check include:
- Determining priority of care: Unresponsive people require the highest priority as their condition could deteriorate rapidly. Checking allows you to assess medical urgency.
- Assessing injuries: A lack of response may indicate a head injury, internal bleeding, or other trauma that needs advanced medical treatment.
- Monitoring changes: Repeated checks allow you to monitor if a person’s condition improves or worsens over time which guides your actions.
- Communicating with EMS: Providing responders with the person’s responsiveness level helps them triage the situation and prepare appropriate equipment or procedures.
By following a standardized process, you can quickly and accurately gauge responsiveness to make critical judgments about someone’s medical needs. Let’s review the key steps.
How to Check Responsiveness in 5 Steps
Checking responsiveness is a simple 5-step process you can easily remember in an emergency situation:
1. Speak loudly and clearly. When first approaching the injured person, loudly say something like “Can you hear me?” This allows you to alert them verbally from a safe distance.
2. Give a light squeeze. Gently squeeze their shoulders and say “Pain?” in a loud voice. This stimulates a response to physical touch.
3. Check breathing. Look, listen and feel for signs of breathing by placing your ear near their mouth and nose without touching for 10 seconds.
4. Check response to pain. Pinch the skin on the back of their hand between your thumb and fingers and say “Pain?” Watch for reflexive responses like movement or groaning.
5. Check the pupils. If possible, examine both pupils for equal size and brightness of light reflex. Unequal pupils may indicate head trauma.
Through these steps, you want to observe three things – if the person can speak, move purposefully in response to verbal or physical prompts, or shows normal breathing patterns. Let’s review what each potential response level means.
Assessing the Different Response Levels
There are four common levels of responsiveness you may encounter and each has different implications:
1. Responds Normally
If the person can answer questions appropriately, follow commands, and move body parts normally. This indicates they are fully alert and conscious.
2. Arousable
The person initially does not respond normally but can be aroused – opening eyes, comprehending or obeying simple commands.
3. Unresponsive
The person does not interact or respond in any way when spoken too loudly, given a gentle shake or pinch, or breathing is abnormal.
4. Agonal breathing
The person makes occasional gasping, gurgling sounds without regular breathing patterns. This usually occurs right before someone passes away.
An unresponsive or agonal individual needs immediate emergency medical assistance. An arousable person still requires attention but may be stable for short transport to definitive care. Let’s review the process again.
Checking Responsiveness: A Review
To recap, here are the key steps to check someone’s level of responsiveness:
- Verbally alert from a safe distance – Speak loudly and clearly
- Stimulate with touch – Gently squeeze shoulders and ask “Pain?”
- Check breathing – Listen, look and feel for 10 secs
- Test pain response – Pinch hand and ask “Pain?”
- Inspect pupils – Check size and reaction if possible
From the response, determine if they are:
- Responsive – Answers, moves normally
- Arousable – Can be awakened briefly
- Unresponsive – No interaction to stimuli
- Agonal breathing – Occasional gurgling
Knowing how to quickly and correctly assess responsiveness is an important life saving skill. With practice, you’ll become proficient at determining medical priority. Don’t hesitate to repeat the check if you have any doubt about someone’s status.
Common Questions
Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about checking responsiveness:
What if they have an injury preventing response?
Gently move or inspect the injured area if you can without worsening it. Note if there is no reflex even with significant pain response.
When should I call for help?
Dial for emergency services if the person is unresponsive, has abnormal breathing, or a serious looking injury. It’s better to call when in doubt of their stability.
How often should I re-check?
Re-evaluate their level every 5 minutes or if their status could potentially change. Monitor for improvements or new symptoms between repeat checks.
What if they start seizing?
Gently roll them onto their side to protect the airway and note when seizures stop before conducting a full check. Repeated seizures are serious.
What age can infants or small children be checked?
Babies under 1 should only have temperature, breathing, and skin color assessed due to their fragility. Call for medical help promptly if any concerns are noted.
With practice of the simple 5-step method, you’ll gain speed and confidence in checking responsiveness during critical situations. Always err on the side of caution and get emergency assistance promptly if there are any doubts about the person’s medical needs. Proper training and experience are key to accurate evaluation.
Additional Tips
Here are some additional tips when checking responsiveness:
- Position comfortably, ensuring open airway.
- Check surroundings for hazards before approaching.
- Calmly explain who you are and what you’re doing.
- Seek consent whenever possible but prioritize medical evaluation.
- Document findings, times and any relevant history for first responders.
- Protect privacy and limit the number of people near during assessment.
- Your own safety is top priority. Back away at any signs of violence or aggression.
Knowing these assessment techniques puts control of acute medical events into your hands until advanced care arrives. Keeping skills sharp through training ensures best practice during stressful times. Responsiveness checks are only one part of providing comprehensive first aid – always focus on overall care of injuries and critical needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are answers to some additional commonly asked questions:
How long does it take to check responsiveness?
An experienced provider can generally perform a full assessment within 1 minute, but take slightly longer if examining a serious injury that requires care.
What if it’s dark?
Use a flashlight to thoroughly illuminate the scene and allow visual inspection of responses. Proceed more slowly if vision is limited.
If they wake up afterwards, is that a problem?
No, transient periods of unresponsiveness are common after injuries. As long as symptoms fully resolve and medical evaluation finds no underlying issues, there is typically no long-term harm.
What should I look for on repeated checks?
Note changes from prior assessments like fluctuations in response level, new symptoms, worsening condition or signs of improvement. Compare findings each cycle.
What if they are intoxicated?
Judgment may still be impaired even if arousable. Monitor closely and call for assistance if there are any signs not fully alert or stable due to influences like drugs or alcohol.
Should I record footage for evidence?
Focus solely on emergency care – avoid non-essential tasks that could compromise privacy or delay activation of emergency response if needed. Documentation can be provided through official reporting only.
We hope this comprehensive guide on how to properly check responsiveness has addressed your main questions and concerns. Please let us know if you need any clarification or have additional queries. Proper training and practice are key to confident assessment.
