…Ready for it? Many Taylor Swift songs are the right tempo for CPR

Not sure you’ll remember the right rate for giving CPR compressions? Shake it off, calm down and turn on some Taylor Swift.

A recent study out of Monash University in Australia found that more than 50 of the pop star’s songs have a tempo of 100-120 beats per minute – the ideal range for CPR chest compressions.

“Stayin’ Alive,” a 1977 hit by the Bee Gees, has been a longtime, BPM-appropriate CPR companion. Still, as Stephen Nicholls, director of the Victorian Heart Institute and the Victorian Heart Hospital, says, “there’s a CPR-suitable song for every Swiftie Era.”

Although CPR traditionally involves giving rescue breaths to a victim, bystanders unable or unwilling to oblige can administer hands-only or compression-only CPR. Experts advise rescuers to call 911 and begin to push hard and fast on the center of the victim’s chest while waiting for help to arrive.

“A quarter of people who have a heart attack don’t make it to the hospital in the first place, and we know that survival rates for cardiac arrest can be greatly improved with bystander CPR,” Nicholls said. “Taylor Swift’s music is some of the most popular and influential of this generation. Music plays a pivotal role in maintaining effective CPR compressions. As iconic songs lose relevance, identifying new songs with optimal beats per minute for training is crucial.”

Experts at the university recommend remembering the phrase “doctor’s ABCD” (DRS ABCD) when assessing for CPR. The steps:

• Check for Danger
• Check for Response
• Send for Help
• Check Their Airway
• Check for Normal Breathing
• Start CPR
• Defibrillation