A DORSET first aider saved her friends life after he started choking.

British Red Cross community-based first aid trainer, Sara Hodges, has taught hundreds of people across Dorset the skills to save a person’s life. However, on New Year’s Day she had to put her own teaching into practice when a friend began to choke.

Sara, 32, who works in the charity’s county headquarters in Dorchester, was dining with family and friends at a Chinese restaurant in Swindon when one of her fellow diners began to choke on a piece of food. While others thought he was feeling sick, Sara immediately recognised the signs of choking and was able to jump into action.

She said: “I calmly asked if he was choking and he indicated that he was.

“He was sat in quite an awkward place - on a bench with his back to a wall - but I managed to get into a position to strike him firmly on the back. After the first two hits the food remained lodged in his throat, but on the third hit, out it flew.”

She said it all happened quite quickly and there wasn’t time to be frightened or scared.

She said: “Afterwards everyone was a little bit quiet about it. I wouldn’t say it was scary. It was nice to be able to put what I teach into practice.”

Her friend, who does not wish to be named, made a full recovery and suffered no further ill effects.

However, Sara knows things could have been very different if she hadn’t known what to do.

She said: “Unfortunately, I’ve heard many stories where members of the public may witness someone suffering from a medical emergency but don’t get involved. It could be that they don’t have the confidence to act, or assume that someone else will step in and help.

“Sadly, part of the reason people are reluctant to step forward is due to a misconception that first aid is overly complicated. It’s not. In this case I had to hit my friend three times on the back. If we’d done nothing and waited for a medical professional to arrive, the end result could have been very different. The smallest interventions can make a big difference.”

She urged people to learn some basic first aid and have the confidence to do ‘something rather than nothing.’ The Red Cross Everyday First Aid course Sara teaches can, in two hours, give complete beginners a thorough introduction to all the key skills.

She is also looking for volunteer educators to join her team to help teach first aid to vulnerable groups in Dorset.

To volunteer call Sara Hodges on 07860 414 045 or email shodges@redcross.org.uk or for more information on British Red Cross first aid courses visit redcross.org.uk.

WATCH THIS VIDEO TO LEARN HOW TO HELP SOMEONE THAT'S CHOKING: