The recovery position: step by step

In short: The recovery position is meant for unconscious people who are breathing normally. It keeps the airway open because the tongue, saliva or vomit cannot fall back into the throat.

In more detail: If someone does not respond, first speak to them and touch them, then check their breathing. If the person is not breathing normally, resuscitation is needed immediately instead of the recovery position.

In detail

• Check: Speak loudly and shake their shoulders; if there is no response, gently tilt the head back and look for normal breathing for no more than ten seconds.
• Get help: Call loudly to bystanders for help and dial 112 (the emergency number in Germany and the EU) or have someone dial it (notruf-richtig-absetzen).
• Step one: Kneel beside the person and place the nearer arm at a right angle upwards, with the palm facing up.
• Step two: Bring the far arm across the chest and place the back of the hand against the nearer cheek; hold the hand there.
• Step three: With your other hand grasp the far leg at the thigh, bend the knee and pull the person towards you onto their side.
• Adjusting: Position the upper leg so that hip and knee are at right angles and the person does not roll back.
• Keeping the airway open: Tilt the head slightly back, open the mouth a little and adjust the hand under the cheek so that the mouth points towards the ground.
• Keep watching: Cover the person, stay with them and check their breathing regularly; if they stop breathing normally, start resuscitation at once (wiederbelebung-und-defibrillator-grundlagen).
• Practise: The steps only come naturally in an emergency if you have practised them; a first-aid course is the best way to do so (erste-hilfe-grundlagen).