Emergency Cardiac Care News Digest - October 25, 2024

Emergency Cardiac Care News Digest is an assortment of current events and news related to emergency cardiac care and resuscitation. Produced by Code One Training Solutions, Emergency Cardiac Care News Digest is published every Friday throughout the year.

Without deep reflection, one knows from daily life that one exists for other people.

Albert Einstein

‘Could be Your Child’: Virginia Black Girl Dies After Collapsing at School Because Officials Refused to Perform CPR — Despite State Law Requiring Them to be Certified, Lawsuit Claims

Kaleiah Jones should have been in good hands when she collapsed in her Virginia high school hallway from a heart condition earlier this year.
After all, Virginia state law requires all school resource officers and nurses — as well as teachers and administrators — to be certified in administrating CPR. State law also requires school officials to be certified in the use of automated external defibrillators, which are mandated by state law to be in every school.
But despite the law, several teachers, administrators, a school resource officer and a nurse stood around the 16-year-old Black girl for 16 minutes, neglecting to perform CPR other than the school cop conducting chest compressions for only 17 seconds.
As a result, Jones ended up dying, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed last week, accusing the school staff at Menchville High School in Newport News of standing by and doing nothing while the girl died.

Continue reading: https://atlantablackstar.com/2024/10/22/virginia-black-girl-dies-after-collapsing-at-school-because-officials-refused-to-perform-cpr/

Runner collapses, suffers cardiac arrest at half-marathon that raises funds for Heart and Stroke Foundation

Man had just crossed the finish line, race director says
The man in charge of the WFPS half-marathon had to put his years of paramedic experience to use after a runner collapsed just after the finish line on Sunday.
Race director Jonathan Torchia, who had worked as a paramedic for 13 years before becoming a business owner, says he was metres away when it happened.
In that moment, Torchia says he went from race director to paramedic as he and volunteers sprang into action, grabbing an automated external defibrillator (AED) and doing chest compressions.

Entire story: https://www.cbc.ca/lite/story/1.7359090

Public will have access to defibrillators at state beaches in Rhode Island

NARRAGANSETT – Defibrillators are being installed at state beaches in Narragansett for use by the public, according to the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.
“These devices can provide critical lifesaving support during times when lifeguards and DEM staff are not onsite, especially during the shoulder seasons and evening hours during the summer,” the DEM said.
The defibrillators and bleed control kits are being deployed at Roger Wheeler State Beach, Scarborough North State Beach, Scarborough South State Beach, Salty Brine State Beach, and Fisherman’s Memorial State Campground, the DEM said.
The defibrillator stations are linked to the Narragansett Fire Department and E-911 dispatch. The device can be accessed in an emergency by dialing 911 to receive a code.

Full story: https://www.yahoo.com/news/public-access-defibrillators-state-beaches-152632706.html

Challenges, Innovations, and Training in Airway Management During Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: A Narrative Review

Full access: https://www.cureus.com/articles/304670-challenges-innovations-and-training-in-airway-management-during-cardiopulmonary-resuscitation-a-narrative-review#!/

University’s “Ship with a Heart” Initiative a Great Success

On 16 October 2024, on the occasion of World Restart a Heart Day, a special event took place on board the University’s frigate, Dar Młodzieży, and in the nearby Kościuszki square. The event was held under the slogan Ship with a Heart and was organised by Gdynia Maritime University in cooperation with the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity Foundation.
His Magnificence, The Rector, Professor Adam Weintrit, described the event in the following words:
Gdynia Maritime University was pleased to support the initiative of beating the record in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and join the national event organised by the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity. Our University agreed for the event to take place on deck on Dar Młodzieży allowing over 200 students, who took an active part in the initiative, to come on board.
As a maritime university that produces future officers of the Merchant Navy, we put particular emphasis on teaching our students first aid, including rescue at sea. We know how invaluable such knowledge is in saving human lives.
We are honoured that Dar Młodzieży is the focus of a nationwide initiative of such social importance.
Exactly at noon in 867 cities in the country, including Gdynia, the attempt began to beat the record for the number of people performing CPR continuously for 30 minutes at the same time. In Gdynia, the signal to start came from the typhon on the vessel’s bridge, and was sounded personally by Professor Adam Weintit and Jurek Owsiak. Following the loud, pronounced sound, 35 teams from 27 schools, institutions, and centres began an attempt to beat the record.

Read more and watch a related video: https://umg.edu.pl/en/news/2024/universitys-ship-heart-initiative-great-success

Sewickley Academy student’s medical diagnosis spurs AED training, awareness

A Sewickley Academy student is on a heartfelt mission to promote cardiovascular awareness.
Sophomore Ben Terrell of Sewickley was diagnosed with a heart condition in the seventh grade after undergoing numerous medical tests.
Since then, he’s been vocal about his journey navigating a heart-related diagnosis of anomalous coronary artery. According to the Cleveland Clinic, this means that the coronary artery is either in the wrong location or started in the wrong location in the womb.
“It’s a pretty rare thing but I can play sports — but I have to have an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) present,” Terrell said, which involves transporting a portable AED to all of his varsity soccer games and tennis matches.

Source: https://community.triblive.com/news/3655122

UB initiative aims to save lives by registering AEDs

Only 10% of victims of sudden cardiac arrest survive, and that number is even lower in areas with health inequities. Cardiac arrest victims who receive a shock from an automated external defibrillator (AED) prior to EMS arrival have 2-3 times better odds of survival. The problem is that in most communities, the locations of AEDs are unknown to citizens and even first responders.
A UB PhD student wants to change that.
Rhonda Drewes, a doctoral student in the biomedical sciences program in the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, has been awarded a social justice fellowship from the school’s Office of Inclusion and Cultural Enhancement to identify and register AEDs, especially in areas of Western New York that are underserved.
Drewes is working with a coalition of local and national groups, including one started by Leslie Bisson, June A. and Eugene R. Mindell, MD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Orthopaedics in the Jacobs School. Bisson, head team physician for the Buffalo Bills, was a member of the first response team that provided on-field care for Bills safety Damar Hamlin when he suffered cardiac arrest in January 2023. Since then, Bisson has been working with community groups to address barriers to bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation/automated external defibrillator (CPR/AED) training in underserved communities in Buffalo.

More: https://www.buffalo.edu/ubnow/stories/2024/10/drewes-fellowship-aeds.html

Video Story: First responders jump in with AED to save teen’s life at tennis tournament

WOOD TV8: Two sheriff’s deputies, an off-duty paramedic and an OBGYN saved a 16-year-old’s life at a tennis tournament at South Christian High School on Friday, deputies say.

ENCORE: Public Awareness of Automated External Defibrillator Locations

This research yielded 2 major findings: most respondents willing to use AEDs on strangers could not locate the device during emergencies, and those confident in recognizing AEDs displayed greater awareness of AED locations. Previous research on AED location has primarily focused on deployment strategies. Furthermore, studies also discovered innovative approaches, such as dispatcher-assisted AED retrieval or drone delivery, that align more closely with the concept of passive access to the AED. Although inspiring, these methods may require additional time for telephone calls and dispatcher confirmation. Various urban environments and high costs may also hinder device delivery feasibility. In contrast, active AED retrieval, where bystanders know and retrieve the nearest AED themselves, may lead to shorter time to defibrillation during high-stress situations.

Learn more: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2824680

Newly Placed Harrisburg City Island AED Used to Save Life
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — A new lifesaving tool is now available on City Island in Harrisburg and one resident used it to save a life.
The Peyton Walker Foundation and UPMC Pinnacle Foundation helped install a new “Save Station” at FNB Field, home of the Harrisburg Senators. The Save Station is a weatherproof cabinet designed to protect an AED that can restore a person to a normal heart rhythm during a heart attack. Having an AED in the stadium has already saved someone’s life during the Prostate Cancer Walk.
“Somebody was yelling that there was a cardiac arrest, so I immediately grabbed my office key that was in my pocket, sprinted up to unlock the gate, turned the alarm off, ran in, grabbed the AED, and sprinted back down,” said Jessica Moyer, a Special Events Coordinator for the Senators who saved Hrinda’s life using an AED. “It’s the fastest I’ve run, I think, in my lifetime.”

Full story: https://www.abc27.com/local-news/harrisburg-senators-employee-helps-saves-a-life-using-aed-on-city-island/

The Real Way Defibrillators Save Lives and What Happens To Your Heart When A Defibrillator Is Used

A pair of entertaining videos.

Watch them here: https://www.msn.com/en-us/video/watch/the-real-way-defibrillators-save-lives/vi-AA1sCq2O?ocid=hpmsn

UConn alumni-founded CPR training business opens Storrs location

17 years ago, a cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and emergency training business, called Code One Training Solutions, originated at the University of Connecticut. Both UConn Nursing alumni, co-founders Richard Shok (BSN’ 08) and Allison Shok (BSN’ 10) opened their newest training site in Storrs, Conn. with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday, according to a press release.
Attendees that joined in the ribbon cutting included Mansfield Mayor Antonia Moran, Mansfield Fire Chief John Roache, Willimantic Fire Chief Marc Scrivener, UConn Nursing Dean Victoria Vaughan Dickson and several Code One C-suite executives.
“Today will go down as a special day in Code One history!” read an Instagram post caption regarding Friday’s ribbon cutting. “This morning, we opened our newest training site back where it all began: Storrs, CT, just walking distance from the University of Connecticut campus!”
Located at 9 Dog Lane, Suite 102 in Downtown Storrs, the new location serves to educate the campus community about CPR through classes and training programs, according to the press release. The location also includes an “outdoor-access AED enclosure” that anyone can access in case of an emergency.

Source: https://dailycampus.com/2024/10/22/uconn-alumni-founded-cpr-training-business-opens-storrs-location/

‘You never know when you’re going to be able to help someone live another 20 years’

When Mike Sheridan’s heart stopped at a volleyball game, Maria Lauinger was in the right place at the right time.
“I’ve known him for about 15 years, we’re friends,” said Lauinger, a Brandon Township resident. “He was walking to the bathroom, and about 30 seconds before anyone hollered, someone called 911. I was the first one there, he was completely blue.”
While playing in their senior volleyball league on Oct. 1, Sheridan, 73, went to the restroom and collapsed. His nodes had fired at the same time, which stopped his heart and would have killed him. Luckily, Lauinger spent 24 years as a registered nurse, mostly in the ICU, and knew what to do.
She was aware of his atrial fibrillation, which he had been monitoring, so she called for someone to grab the automated external defibrillator (AED) while she started CPR compressions and mouth to mouth.
“I gave him two breaths immediately and did chest compressions for about four minutes,” she said. “I was screaming for the AED and someone brought it for me. Two of the other players opened up the machine, and I gave them instructions and I used it to give him a shock. I did chest compressions and mouth to mouth for another four minutes until he made noise. I cleared out his nose and mouth, and then he was breathing. I’m so, so grateful he was able to be resuscitated.”
Lauinger said it felt like the movies, and that she was determined for him not to die.

Detailed story: https://thecitizenonline.com/you-never-know-when-youre-going-to-be-able-to-help-someone-live-another-20-years/

A tale of two 911 calls

Chris Ades and Claudia Miller had two very different stories to share during Woodland Park’s city council meeting Oct. 17.
Ades, a 70-year-old avid gym goer and outdoorsmen was stepping off his usual 5-mile treadmill run at SNAP Fitness when he passed out as three of his arteries clogged and he went into major cardiac arrest.
That’s when two bystanders at the gym, Liz Bixler and Brandon Heikell, rushed in to administer CPR to Ades that would ultimately keep his body functioning until police arrived minutes later with an automated external defibrillator or AED that would shock Ades heart back into rhythm after the gym’s AED device failed to work.

Read more: https://gazette.com/pikespeakcourier/a-tale-of-two-911-calls/article_2248774a-8d9b-11ef-99f3-17f259599385.html

Teddies assist with CPR training

Dunedin primary school pupils were tasked with saving their favourite teddies’ lives during a class aimed at teaching the 6 and 7-year-olds CPR.
Hato Hone St John asked the pupils at Carisbrook School to bring their teddy bears for practice so if someone did go into cardiac arrest and no adults were around, they would know what to do.
Carisbrook Primary was one of 62 schools nationwide to teach their pupils to save a life through their teddies.
St John national manager of community education Jacci Tatnell said it was about teaching the steps that needed to be taken in a cardiac arrest from an early age.

Source with video: https://www.odt.co.nz/news/the-south-today/teddies-assist-cpr-training

Medics join forces to educate public on CPR

MEYERTON. – In a significant demonstration of community health awareness, paramedics from CERT SA, ER24, and Gauteng Emergency Medical Services came together on World Restart a Heart Day to educate the public on the critical lifesaving technique of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Full story with photos and video: https://www.citizen.co.za/vaalweekblad/news/news-news/2024/10/21/medics-join-forces-to-educate-public-on-cpr/

Charity is urging community groups in the ‘defibrillator deserts’ to apply for a free device to be installed in their area.

An area of Swindon is one of the worst places in England for access to a defibrillator.
Walcot has been identified as one of the 10 worst places in the country for accessing the life-saving equipment in the event of cardiac arrest.
This is according to data from the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
In some parts of Walcot, the average retrieval time for a defibrillator is 12 minutes and 27 seconds.
This equates to an average walking distance of 1,081 metres to reach a defibrillator.

Source: https://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/news/24661986.walcot-one-worst-uk-areas-accessing-defibrillator/

A third of men afraid to give women CPR due to ‘breast fear’

To tackle this issue, St John Ambulance has launched a campaign on October 16, Restart a Heart Day and introduced the world’s first educational bra, the CPR Bra, with the help of Chelsea FC Women’s captain Millie Bright, broadcaster and DJ Ashley James, social content creator and disability campaigner Lucy Edwards, and activist Sharon Gaffka.
The bra features the message ‘It’s OK to Save My Life’ and a reminder of the steps needed to respond to a cardiac arrest.

Story link: https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/24663308.third-men-afraid-give-women-cpr-due-breast-fear/

CPR saves life of WA man clinically dead for eight minutes after cardiac arrest

On a warm Friday night in Dampier, a small town on WA’s Pilbara coast, Wickham Wolves captain Gavin Mippy was unknowingly about to play his last game of competitive football.
With more than five years of experience in the team, he was chosen as captain and ruckman in an evening clash with the Dampier Sharks.
But it wasn’t long into the match when he pushed into the forward-50 area and suddenly collapsed to the ground, suffering a cardiac arrest.
His partner Cody Schlink recalls being on the sideline and rushing over to him as he lay lifeless on the field.

Audio story: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-10-19/cpr-saves-life-wa-man-clinically-dead-after-cardiac-arrest/104469516

‘A miracle everything fell into place’: Coaches, trainer, AED save sophomore’s life

Coaches, trainer, AED save sophomore’s life
September 18 started as just another Wednesday for Hollidaysburg resident Jen Davis.
Her husband, Dave, was at work near Lake Raystown Resort and her son, Spencer, was at football practice at Charles W. Longer Elementary School, so Jen decided to go for a walk across from the facility and glanced over to see if she could get a glimpse of him.
“I was out walking, and I just walked past the field and looked over,” Jen said. “I saw there was a player down and couldn’t tell who it was. Practice was still going on, so I continued walking. That’s when (Hollidaysburg Area football coach Homer) DeLattre flagged me down and told me I needed to go over, because it was Spence.”
At that moment, Sept. 18, 2024, became a day Jen will remember for the rest of her life, because if not for the heroic actions of a group of coaches and Hollidaysburg athletic trainer Amy Smearman, it could have been the date on Spencer’s tombstone.

Read on: https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/local-news/2024/10/a-miracle-everything-fell-into-place-coaches-trainer-aed-save-sophomores-life/

Emergency Drill on the beach of Raco de l’Albir

Every summer, the l’Alfas Town Council conducts emergency drills to ensure that they are adequately prepared to respond should the worst happen while people are enjoying the local beaches.
More recently, they decided to conduct a drill on the beach of Raco de l’Albir in which they simulated an emergency scenario.
Following the exercise, a comprehensive evaluation was conducted to identify areas for improvement and potentially refine the protocols.
These drills ensure that the action protocols are adequate for addressing emergency situations and are part of the Town Council’s ongoing efforts to be fully prepared for any emergency that may arise during the summer season. Various types of exercises covering different emergency scenarios are proposed and carried out to enhance the readiness of the council’s departments of Beaches, Health, and Public Safety.

Source: https://euroweeklynews.com/2024/10/19/emergency-drill-on-the-beach-of-raco-de-lalbir/

SPOTLIGHT: THE CANADIAN RESUSCITATION OUTCOMES CONSORTIUM

Canadian investigators and emergency responders have played a key role in out-of-hospital resuscitation research for more than 20 years. Most recently, three Canadian universities (UBC, U of T, and U of Ottawa), along with collaborating EMS and Fire Services, have been successful participants in the joint US/Canadian Resuscitation Outcomes Consortium (ROC).
Major ROC accomplishments include multiple publications in prestigious scientific journals and observational analyses based upon a large database which is called “ROC Epistry”.

Learn more: https://canroc.org/

Did you catch something in the news related to resuscitation recently that you would like to see in this digest? Want to spotlight an event or activity aimed at improving cardiac arrest outcomes?

Feel free to email david@code1web.com