I first heard about chest compressions and rescue breathing in 1965 at a meeting of emergency care personnel. It apparently developed in the ER where they were aware that direct massage of the heart was effective in arrest situations; someone tried external compressions in situations when there wasn't enough time to open the chest. We were told that the Red Cross would be developing a formal course "soon."

In my initial First Aid course a few years earlier, we were instructed in the "back pressure, Arm lift" technique