Music can play a large role in our day-to-day lives – and often it’s in ways that we don’t really think about. Have you ever wondered why, back in grade school, lessons were taught with songs to make long lists of facts or names easier to remember? Like the alphabet song or maybe the list of the States. Songs and rhymes are often used in teaching because they stick. Additionally, according to research, songs can become strongly associated with an experience or important memory, triggering vivid recall whenever they are heard. How cool is that?
Music and CPR
The internet is filled with stories about how the Bee Gees disco classic “Stayin’ Alive” helped someone perform CPR compressions accurately and thereby save someone’s life, and based on what we’ve mentioned above about songs and memory, it’s no wonder. For a song to be considered as a help for CPR training, it needs a beat close to the optimum number of 100 compressions per minute, which will help you maintain the rapid rhythm you need for chest compressions to jump start the heart during cardiac arrest. This is why "Stayin’ Alive" with its 100 beats per minute (and positive message in its title!) is an excellent song indicator for the proper rate of compressions.
If disco isn't your thing, there are some other songs that fit the 100 bpm requirement. For those with a darker sense of humor, Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust” gets the job done, as well as Madonna’s “La Isla Bonita” and Bjork’s 'Isobel” (100 bpm). Or if you can stand another one from the white suits and mirror ball era, there’s always ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” (100.47 bpm).
At HSI, we don’t encourage or discourage incorporating music into your CPR training; we just thought this was a fun way to help train on a very serious and lifesaving practice procedure.
Bring Your CPR Skills Practice to Life
Our LOOP Learning System uses game-related concepts to create a compelling training experience, including the use of interactive music. Our recent software upgrade to LOOP brought the addition of several new music tracks to reflect the newly included 110 bpm and 120 bpm compression rate settings. Fast-paced and fun, and now with more tunes, LOOP helps you bring a new dimension to your classroom, especially for those "been there, done that" students who are occupationally required to keep their training up to date.
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And, if you have a favorite song you use in class to keep those compressions steady, let us know what it is in the comment fields below! Classical, country & western, maybe a polka? — What song keeps YOUR students on the beat?