Asian Games boosting first-aid skills

Xia unlocked a public bicycle and dashed to the scene. "I immediately showed the emergency medics on site that I was a certified volunteer and we performed CPR on the patient — a 70-year-old man," he said. "I was very nervous, constantly asking myself whether or not my hand was in the right position and if the compressions were being carried out at the right rhythm. Thankfully, the man quickly started breathing again."

In July 2020, Xia helped someone who had accidentally touched a high-tension line and stopped breathing.

"However, in 2021 I was unable to save the life of a senior who collapsed from a heart attack — his family members thought he had heatstroke and did not call the emergency services in time. When I arrived at his home and began carrying out CPR, it was too late," he said.

The incident prompted Xia to study to become a trainer that year to help raise the number of people capable of performing CPR and other first-aid skills.

"As a tutor, I often show common incorrect CPR techniques to my students in an exaggerated way to make the training sessions more interesting and help them remember the right method," he said.