Close your eyes and let your imagination take over for a moment. You’re on that vacation that your husband and you have always dreamed of. The day has been perfect. The weather is perfect. The meal is unbelievable and the restaurant is totally living up to its reputation. Life simply could not get any better. Suddenly, the man at the next table slumps over! He’s having a sudden heart attack and as luck would have it, no one in the restaurant knows cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
But wait, all is not lost. You just so happen to have an iPhone with you. On a whim, you downloaded the Pocket First Aid and CPR Guide app before leaving for vacation. The man is saved. You and your spouse are heroes and the meal is on the house. The day ends as perfectly as it began.
I know! I know! I’m being a bit dramatic today, but the statistics show 95 percent of all persons who suffer a sudden heart attack die before ever reaching the hospital. Those numbers are dramatic! Thankfully, performing CPR doubles a victim’s chance of survival.
According to the American Heart Association (AHA), if nothing is done, if no CPR intervention is performed, then the survival rate of the victim drops as much as 7 – 10 percent for each MINUTE that passes. I’m not quite certain what the average response time is for emergency medical services but let’s pretend that it takes EMS 10 minutes from the time that the call is first placed until they actually arrive on the scene and begin CPR on the victim. Do the math. It’s easy to see why the death rate for sudden heart attack is so high. Brain death begins within 4 – 6 minutes after a sudden heart attack so unless CPR is performed immediately, the victim stands little chance of recovery.
The problem with CPR is that while most of us are familiar with the premise of CPR (i.e. chest compression and breathe, chest compressions and breathe), most of us are not trained. Or, you may be like me. You may have had training but it was so long ago that in a real emergency, I wouldn’t have a clue what to do anymore. Let’s see, is that 12 compressions for one breath? No? Wait, maybe it was 15 compressions and two breaths? Wasn’t it different for children than adults? According to the AHA, even if you don’t remember, this is one time when it’s better to do something – to try – than to do nothing at all.
In today’s busy society, many of us simply don’t have the time to fit one more class or one more training session into our already overloaded schedule. The Pocket First Aid and CPR Guide is a piece of technology that might help you save a life someday. Put out by the AHA, this iPhone app contains instructions for Child and Infant CPR, Child and Infant Choking and 12 emergency reference guides. The information is current and contains not only step-by-step instructions on how to do CPR but contains demonstration videos as well. The app also allows you to store insurance information, pertinent medical information and physician contact numbers that you might need in a real emergency situation. It wasn’t free but at $3.99 seemed a real bargain considering that it gives you all the information needed to perform CPR at your fingertips.
Technology is wonderful but what if you don’t have an iPhone and you don’t have time to take a formal CPR class? Then you might consider one of the self-directed programs available through the AHA such as the CPR Anytime course. CPR Anytime is a self directed course that allows you to learn CPR at home or work. This isn’t free ($34.95) but comes with not only a DVD and a resource booklet, but an inflatable manikin for practice purposes. The AHA also has an ECC/Class Connector (See, http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3012360) which will help locate CPR classes in your neighborhood. There is also a wealth of information available, for free, on the internet regarding how CPR is performed.
The MedlinePlus website has videos available online for free that demonstrated how to do adult CPR and well as infant CPR and child CPR. (See, http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/cpr.html Look for the heading “Videos.”)
Just remember, when it comes to sudden heart attack – ACT! You just may save a life.
Sources:
CPR Facts and Statistics, 08 May 2008, American Heart Association, http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3034352
Pocket First Aid and CPR, Apptism, http://www.apptism.com/apps/pocket-first-aid-amp-cpr-guide
The Life Saving Mission of CPR Anytime, 29 Sept 2009, American Heart Association, http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3040526