Wednesday, June 4, 2003

Every day, nearly 1,000 Americans suffer sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). Chances for the victim's survival decrease by 10 percent every minute after the attack.

If the attack happens in your store or your office, you are the victim's best chance for survival. It doesn't require a healthcare professional.

You can save this person's life, thanks to a program called public access defibrillation, or PAD. Finding out how to incorporate PAD into your workplace is your public-health responsibility.

You've probably seen what SCA looks like on TV. But when it happens to someone right in front of you, whether to a loved one or a stranger, a work colleague or a customer, it is a sight you never forget. More than anything, you want to help.

Most commonly, the victim is suffering from a heart rhythm disorder called "ventricular fibrillation." In this case, the victim needs defibrillation, which is an electrical shock to correct the heart's rhythm, and they need it as soon as possible. If current is not received, then the victim will die.

Defibrillation is delivered through a device called an automated external defibrillator, or AED.

The latest AEDs are remarkably simple to use. With minimal training, anyone can be a lifesaver. The lightweight devices talk you through the rescue. They show you pictures to remind you how to proceed. They sense whether the victim needs CPR or defibrillation, and they tell you how to deliver either. (They're also very affordable, a recent development that makes widespread PAD a real possibility at last.)

Wherever it is instituted, PAD is a stunning success story. Placed in airplanes, airports, casinos, hotels, office buildings, malls, restaurants, retail stores, and other public places, AEDs are saving lives all over the country. They are far more successful than CPR alone, with survival rates up to 70 percent.

If you work in an office, a store, a mall, or a restaurant, you should have a defibrillator, and you should know how to use it. You have a fire extinguisher and smoke alarms. You have a telephone to call the police. You have a first-aid kit. You should have a defibrillator. You owe it to your employees, your customers, and yourself to find out more.

Alain Perez

aperez@salatti.us

[Alain Perez is a member of the AED Instructor Foundation and offers CPR and AED training and consulting to businesses.]