New TikTok dance teaches how to perform CPR

By Charlie Bayliss via 72Point

A new TikTok dance is sweeping the internet - to increase awareness about performing CPR.

South African dance star Oti Mabuse can be seen performing the five major parts of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in the video - including checking for danger and then for breathing - using choreography which mimics the steps.

@otimabuse I've done the #ResusCPRChallenge to raise awareness about cardiac arrest. Did you know three-quarters of British adults know CPR - but less than half feel confident performing it? In five simple steps, you can learn how to save a life. I challenge my sister @motsimabusetanzschule and the beautiful @thisisdavinamccall ♬ original sound - Oti mabuse

She also calls for help, asks for a person to fetch a defibrillator, and carries out chest compressions with her hands interlocked at two beats per second. 

The pro dancer partnered with Resuscitation Council UK to record new moves to Olly Murs’ hit classic 'Heart Skips A Beat.'

The star told her 320,000 TikTok fans: “I've done the #ResusCPRChallenge to raise awareness about cardiac arrest.

"Did you know three-quarters of British adults know CPR - but less than half feel confident performing it?"

TikTokers have been encouraged to record their own version of Oti’s dance and share on their social media platforms.

Figures show almost three-quarters in the UK have been told how to perform the life-saving skill but less than half of those (44 percent) feel confident administering it.

Esther Kuku, director of communications Resuscitation Council UK, said: “Having Oti on board to choreograph such a creative and engaging dance will help raise awareness of CPR and highlight just how easy it is to learn.

“The more people who know how to perform this life-saving skill, the more chance people have of surviving a cardiac arrest, which can happen to anyone at any time, so everyone needs to know that their two hands could save a life.”

The dance was recorded after the charity conducted research, via OnePoll, which found just 41 percent of UK adults knew where to find a defibrillator.

Worryingly, less than a third (29 percent) know how to use a defibrillator on someone in cardiac arrest.

Almost a quarter (23 percent) said they would leave a person in cardiac arrest to phone an ambulance - something which is strongly advised against by Resuscitation Council UK.

Esther Kuku added: “While it’s encouraging almost three-quarters of adults say they know how to perform CPR, there is always room to learn and develop these skills, particularly those who may not have brushed up on it for some time.

“We believe Oti’s video will go some way to ensure engagement and embed confidence in performing CPR.”

To learn more visit here.

For #RestartAHeart '22, we wanted something exciting & eye-catching to help teach the public how to do #CPR.

So, we enlisted the help of @sexeducation star #ConnorSwindells, a lookalike CPR manikin and the skills of @PabloAgency.

Intrigued? You should be:https://t.co/FZ5pWEAiUj pic.twitter.com/wnTboFPsrJ

— Resuscitation Council UK (@ResusCouncilUK) October 10, 2022