Oti Mabuse promotes CPR skills with new TikTok dance

‘The more people who know how to perform this life-saving skill, the more chance people have of surviving a cardiac arrest,’ charity says

Strictly Come Dancing star Oti Mabuse hopes to increase awareness about performing CPR through a new dance video.

The South African dancer can be seen performing the five major parts of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in the TikTok clip – including checking for danger and then for breathing using choreography which mimics the steps.

She also calls 999 for help, asks for a person to fetch a defibrillator, and carries out chest compressions with her hands interlocked at two beats per second.

The pro dancer partnered with Resuscitation Council UK to record new moves to Olly Murs’s classic hit “Heart Skips a Beat”.

The star told her 320,000 TikTok fans: “I’ve done the #ResusCPRChallenge to raise awareness about cardiac arrest.

“Did you know three-quarters of British adults know CPR – but less than half feel confident performing it?”

Joining in with the dancing action was TV presenter and actor Karim Zeroual, who also filmed a version of the dance.

TikTokers have been encouraged to record their own version of Oti’s dance and share on their social media platforms.

Esther Kuku, from Resuscitation Council UK, said: “Having Oti on board to choreograph such a creative and engaging dance will help raise awareness of CPR and highlight just how easy it is to learn.

“The more people who know how to perform this life-saving skill, the more chance people have of surviving a cardiac arrest, which can happen to anyone at anytime , so everyone needs to know that their two hands could save a life.”

The dance was recorded after the charity conducted research via OnePoll found just 41 per cent of adults knew where to find a defibrillator. Less than one-third (29 per cent) knew how to use a defibrillator on someone in cardiac arrest.

Almost one-quarter (23 per cent) said they would leave a person in cardiac arrest to phone an ambulance – something which is strongly advised against by Resuscitation Council UK.

Ms Kuku added: “While it’s encouraging almost three-quarters of adults say they know how to perform CPR, there is always room to learn and develop these skills, particularly those who may not have brushed up on it for some time.

“We believe Oti’s video will go some way to ensure engagement and embed confidence in performing CPR.”