I would like to take a moment to introduce you to the Bystander CPR Program.
The Violet Township Fire Department is diligently working to enhance the community’s understanding and capability to perform compression-only CPR (bystander CPR). In a nationwide study by the American Heart Association, it was discovered that less than 20 percent of bystanders begin CPR during situations where it is needed.
For every minute that a person is in cardiac arrest, his or her chance of survival decreases by 10 percent. When an individual’s heart stops, so does the blood flow to the brain, the heart and other vital organs. After six minutes of being in cardiac arrest, with no CPR, brain tissue begins to die. Brain death may occur after ten minutes of cardiac arrest.
I believe these numbers and facts are extremely important because, in Violet Township , our average response time is just over six minutes. This is calculated from the time that a 9-1-1 call is dispatched until we arrive on the scene. This creates an enormous challenge to the EMS providers if CPR was never initiated prior to our arrival at the scene.
Without bystander CPR, our ability to obtain a return of spontaneous circulation is greatly diminished. The best chance for surviving cardiac arrest, and walking out of the hospital unassisted, occurs when the patient receives immediate CPR.
The Bystander CPR Program is being introduced to our community to increase the awareness, simplicity and importance of how a bystander can assess a person you think may be in cardiac arrest and ultimately start CPR if needed. Performing bystander CPR is the single most important step to saving the life of a person who has suffered a cardiac arrest.
If you are asking yourself, “Why is it that so many people don’t start compressions?” the reality is that there are many reasons. Some people panic or are in shock. Others may not know what to do. Some fear legal consequences, or are afraid of hurting the victim or patient.
This program is designed to calm your fears, explain all of these issues and ramifications, and ultimately make you more comfortable with performing this critical life saving step. The program will teach compression-only CPR in a minimal amount of time. Our goal is to reach the maximum amount of people in the community, leaving them with the tools, materials and information so they can react appropriately and instinctively in an emergency.
Through this program, the hope and goal of the Violet Township Fire Department is to create a community-wide Bystander CPR Zone. This would mean that 90 percent of the residents in both the City of Pickerington and Violet Township would receive the bystander CPR training.
Eventually, we hope to illustrate this important safety awareness area via the display of stickers and signs that announce that the community, residents, employees and businesses are trained participants. These stickers or signs by no means would make one responsible to start CPR; they would simply be there as a public reminder of the importance and emphasis the community has placed on knowing how to perform CPR.
Additionally, we are trying to create an AED registry. The registry would instruct people in the community on where to locate the nearest AED in the event one is needed. This registry will be accessible to the 9-1-1/emergency dispatchers as well as on smart phone apps. The AEDs can be utilized in conjunction with bystander CPR.
You will be able to visit the Violet Township website and simply watch a video to receive this training. This is a non-certification class that will only take a few minutes to watch or share with others. The Violet Township Fire Department will continue to offer CPR certification classes at the firehouse, which you can add to your bystander CPR training.
We continue to proudly serve our community. Please help us save lives by learning bystander CPR.
