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If you're working in the medical sector, you may well be using BVMs, Bag Ventilation Masks. If not, maybe even in first aid circles, you may still be using these. Now, with a bag ventilation mask, the idea here is that we're actually forcing air into the lungs rather than blowing it ourselves; so, there's no infection control problem. Bag ventilation masks come in different sizes but, here, we've just got two. This is the pediatric version and this is an adult version. What we're going to do really is concentrate on the adult version. The mask itself has a bag here. And what you'd normally do with them is just extend it to expose the whole layer of the bag. And the components on here is the mask works very similar to the oral-nasal or pocket mask. And you've got an air-filled sack around the outside, which seals onto the face. You can actually remove these and put different size masks on, should you need to. On here is just where you're squeezing down, which is forcing the air into the lungs. When you let go, it's sucking more air back in. On this end, we've got a removable bag. Now, this is for oxygen use. If you're just using this without oxygen, you'd use it without a bag on the end. When you squeeze it, the air is coming out through the mouthpiece. When you let go, it's being sucked back in through the one-way valves on this end. If you've got oxygen available, then this can help a lot. By doing these breaths, you're actually blowing 21% oxygen into the patient. If you're doing normal CPR, your body, you take in 21%, your body uses 5%, so when you exhale, it's 16. You've got a 5% increase in the oxygen percentage just by using this. With supplementary oxygen, what we do is we place the oxygen bag onto the bottom and then we'd use a piece of oxygen hosing, which would go straight on to the O2 cylinder. Plug that in onto the O2 inlet valve. And then, as the oxygen is turned on, this bag on the end is going to expand as it fills up with oxygen. Just to prime the bag, you would just squeeze it a couple of times to actually flush out any of the air in there so it's replaced with 100% oxygen. Then, every time you then squeeze the bag, you're forcing oxygen 100% into the patient. When you let go, rather than take the air just out of the atmosphere, it's taking the oxygen out of the bag. You set the O2 to fill the bag up and keep the bag full of oxygen. If you're using something like this and you're using oxygen and you need to defibrillate, you do need to make sure you remove this away from the patient because there's always a risk of having pure oxygen and the potential with sparks and electricity.
Using the Bag Valve Mask (BVM) for Non-Breathing Patients
Introduction
When rescue breaths are not feasible, the Bag Valve Mask (BVM) becomes a vital tool for delivering ventilations to a non-breathing patient.
Components of the BVM
Let's examine the key components of the Bag Valve Mask:
- Oxygen Supply: Connects to the BVM, enriching the system with oxygen.
- Reservoir Bag: Oxygen reservoir ensuring optimal oxygen delivery to the patient.
- Compressible Bag: Provides controlled oxygen flow during ventilation.
- Valve Mechanism: Regulates the flow of oxygen during both inhalation and exhalation.
Using the BVM
Proper usage of the BVM is critical for effective ventilation:
- Positioning: Place the mask on the patient's face, ensuring a secure seal over the nose and chin, extending to the base of the chin.
- Airway Management: Open the airway fully using a head tilt chin lift technique to maximize airflow.
- Sealing: Gently push down on the mask to maintain a seal while avoiding excessive pressure.
- Two-Man Technique: For optimal control, it's recommended to use a two-person approach. One person secures the mask and airway while the other operates the bag for ventilation.
- Single-Hand Bag Compression: When squeezing the bag, always use one hand. Using two hands may cause lung trauma and complicate future ventilation efforts.
By following these guidelines, you can effectively utilize the Bag Valve Mask to provide essential ventilations to non-breathing patients.