CPR Training saves lives.
Many people ask themselves how they would react if someone close to them suddenly collapsed from cardiac arrest. In this cases, someone with CPR training would know what to do.
Leon County Government’s annual initiative sets an example on raising awareness and preparing people to deal with these types of worst case scenarios. Besides providing vital information, the program involves a complex training which grants every participant the opportunity to be always ready to respond in a critical situation.
One of the participants confessed that her daughter suffered from a sudden cardiac arrest in December 2014, during a sports activity. Fortunately, two optometry residents heard the screams of the desperate mother and after establishing that the little girl had no pulse, they performed the CPR (short from cardiopulmonary resuscitation) by doing turns.
After many chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, the paramedics arrived and managed to bring the girl’s heart back into rhythm with the help of an automated external defibrillator (AED).
The fact that the two doctors knew how to perform the CPR was a real lifesaver in that situation. Leon County Emergency Medical Services provide CPR training every year assuring that people learn how to tackle the situation before paramedics arrive at the scene.
The sixth annual “Press the Chest” CPR training event encourages people, who often feel helpless in such circumstances, to become more confident of the fact that their fast response can save the life of others. The training day will take place from 10 a.m. until Saturday noon, on June 11 at the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center, 505 W. Pensacola St. Check-in.
The event will be organized thanks to the combined efforts of the Florida Department of Health, Capital Regional Medical Center, Tallahassee Memorial Health Care, LifeFlight Tallahassee, Bond Community Health, FSU First Responders Program and FAMU Student Health Services.
During the “Press the Chest” day, people will learn how to use an AED, how correctly to perform CPR and new recommendations for the CPR procedure. Furthermore, every participant will receive an American Heart Association CPR Anytime kit, consisting of supplies, educational materials, DVD and a CPR manikin.
Cardiac arrest leads to the death of around 300,000 people every year in the United States, but thanks to the CPR training program, the survival rate in Leon County is over 33 percent compared to seven percent national average.
Image Source:City of Alisoviejo
