When giving chest compressions, what should you ensure happens between compressions?

When performing chest compressions during CPR, allowing the chest to fully recoil between compressions is crucial for several reasons. Fully allowing the chest to return to its normal position creates a vacuum effect which helps to fill the heart with blood. This is essential for maintaining adequate blood flow and ensuring that the heart can pump effectively during the next compression.

Proper recoil also helps to generate sufficient blood pressure, which is vital for delivering oxygen-rich blood to the brain and other vital organs. Without full recoil, the effectiveness of each compression can be significantly diminished, potentially leading to poorer patient outcomes.

Other considerations in the question, such as keeping the chest elevated or applying additional pressure, could interfere with the natural function of the heart or impede blood flow. Allowing the abdomen to rise does not contribute to effective chest compressions and may lead to misdirection in the CPR technique. Therefore, ensuring full chest recoil is essential to optimize the chances of survival in a cardiac arrest situation.