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14Jan/129

Vinnie Jones – stayin’ alive for the British Heart Foundation

I think this is a brilliant advert. Wonderful idea and execution and conveys an important message in a way that's accessible and memorable.

10/10.



Posted by Robin Brown

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  • http://twitter.com/ellie_d ellie_d

    Completely agree. First class.

  • NotConfusedJustPondering

    Except…

    ‘Staying Alive’ runs at approx 103bpm. The recommended rate of compression for hands-only CPR is 120bpm. While it is probably better to ‘have a go’ than to stand by and do nothing, (at least if you had a go and the patient still died, it’s easier to reconcile with your conscience) chances are it will have little effect.

    Also…

    ‘Push on the sovereign’ can be quite misleading too. Anyone who has ever learned CPR would tell you that it’s quite a precise location that you’re supposed to identify.

    And…

    They dont tell you that you should never perform this on someone that is breathing by themselves. And it is dangerous to assume that this is just common sense, especially in people that are relying on a tv ad for first aid instruction, rather than seek proper training.

    And worst of all…

    The effectiveness of hands-only CPR compared to full CPR (including mouth-to-mouth) is poor. To have an ad where the instructor tells people ‘you only ever kiss your missus on the mouth’ is quite misleading and confusing, especially to young first-aiders as this instruction contradicts their training.

    Still, it’s funny, so it gets the thumbs up here. Ads that sell products, fair enough, humour and innovation are appropriate. But when the ad is meant to inform, then surely accuracy should outweigh style?

  • NotConfusedJustPondering

    Except…

    ‘Staying Alive’ runs at approx 103bpm. The recommended rate of compression for hands-only CPR is 120bpm. While it is probably better to ‘have a go’ than to stand by and do nothing, (at least if you had a go and the patient still died, it’s easier to reconcile with your conscience) chances are it will have little effect.

    Also…

    ‘Push on the sovereign’ can be quite misleading too. Anyone who has ever learned CPR would tell you that it’s quite a precise location that you’re supposed to identify.

    And…

    They dont tell you that you should never perform this on someone that is breathing by themselves. And it is dangerous to assume that this is just common sense, especially in people that are relying on a tv ad for first aid instruction, rather than seek proper training.

    And worst of all…

    The effectiveness of hands-only CPR compared to full CPR (including mouth-to-mouth) is poor. To have an ad where the instructor tells people ‘you only ever kiss your missus on the mouth’ is quite misleading and confusing, especially to young first-aiders as this instruction contradicts their training.

    Still, it’s funny, so it gets the thumbs up here. Ads that sell products, fair enough, humour and innovation are appropriate. But when the ad is meant to inform, then surely accuracy should outweigh style?

  • http://www.robinbrown.co.uk Robin Brown

    I’d guess the British Heart Foundation have thought about this – and I’d suggest that they probably have an idea of what they’re talking about. 

    The points you make may be valid, but if you’re putting out an advert that aims to educate as many as possible you need your ad to be memorable and simple. Lots and lots of people have seen this ad and will remember it. A more specific ad wouldn’t have been seen by as many people and wouldn’t have been as memorable.

    On the whole this will be a net win.

  • Sovereign

    Actually the effectiveness of hands only CPR is fine if you consider that an ambulance should hopefully be on the way, on the other hand there is loads of examples of people trained in CPR not doing it because of fear.

    Your post actually shows why this advert was made (obviously I don’t know your background), people think CPR is complicated, worry about the fine details and have a real fear of doing harm. This problem has been known for a while. In reality none of this is true in an emergency. Just get in there and give it a try.

  • http://www.robinbrown.co.uk Robin Brown

    Don’t be ridiculous – the ASA has not had ‘millions of complaints’. What your views are on whether the ad is helpful or not has, at a wild guess, been weighed up by the British Heart Foundation. I’d guess that the sane thought occurred to them at some point. Clearly they decided that, on balance, it was worth it.

  • Steph

    Few things.

    1. It clearly does say ‘someone who isn’t breathing’ at the start of the advert. It’s hard to see why anyone would perform CPR on someone who is clearly breathing. Kinda defeats the object. I suppose if you were super concerned, you could include the old ‘mirror in front of the mouth and watch for the vapour’ trick, but I think that it’s important not to detract away from the main message with side notes.
    2. Recent evidence actually shows that keeping the blood moving around the body is far more important than getting air into the lungs: the lungs have a tidal volume of air that is never completely expelled until death, and regardless, you can have as much air in the lungs as you like; if it’s not getting round the body, you might as well not bother. Also the thought of doing mouth to mouth and fear of disease transmission was putting people off doing CPR altogether – and it’s better to do hands-only than nothing at all.3. 17 bpm is not going to make the world of difference. Your heart rate changes more than that going up a small flight of stairs on a daily basis  (incidentally, ‘staying alive’ was chosen because it has a set tempo and is punchy, as well as being memorable; it replaced older advice to do CPR to the tune of ‘nellie the elephant’, because with that song, it is easier to get the tempo and force wrong.) hard and fast is the key. if you are doing it right, breaking ribs is not uncommon. better that than dying.
    4. I think a lot of people who are complaining are the sort who want to show off how much they know about CPR, but they are missing the point: the advert is supposed to be simplified, memorable and ‘layman’, it is better in this situation for 90% of people to understand 50% of the point, than 99% of people understanding 1% of the point. use a word like ‘cyanosis’, and you’ve just switched off at least half your audience.

    5. if you are an expert, it is your duty to communicate your expertise to the masses, not beat them over the head with it (to feel superior, or for any other purpose). if they do not understand, it is because you have failed to communicate your point to them. I think the BHF have really done well on this front. They are not trying to train doctors; they are just trying to equip joe public with basic knowledge.

  • Sovereign

    I’m sorry but this is all wrong. I’m training to be a Paramedic and I really hope this advert will lead to two things:

    1. Arriving at more arrests where CPR was started early by a bystander – it has a huge positive impact on the chances of survival. 

    2. People taking interest in this and seeking a first aid course. 

    I would never expect a bystander to do things like check pulses, open the airway, check breathing etc. Even someone trained in first aid will find following the training difficult in a scary situation hence the simplification. I would however expect them to call 999 immediately and if they are prepared to give hands only CPR a go then I would never admonish them if this ended up being the wrong thing to do.

    Also if a person is not breathing they are certainly going to have a cardiac arrest. So I’m not sure what the point is of your opening line.

  • Steph

    well would you look at that. the result of the ‘millions of complaints’ (all 20) that the ASA had about this advert. funny that. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17666999

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