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Read the latest news, press releases and stories about how AEDs are saving lives every day.

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Interviews

Interview with Armando Muela, Fire Chief Woodside Fire Protection District

Interview with Diana Phillips, Woodside High School Campus Health Aid

Interview with Diane and John Clarebout, lost a son to Cardiac Arrest

Interview with Mike “Coach” Putterman, Cardiac Arrest Survivor

Press Releases

August 09 – Redwood City Parks and Recreation is playing our new Public Service Announcement before every movie shown at Movie Night at Courthouse Square as part of our AED community awareness program. Get your sneak preview right here. Click to play.

Defibrillators coming to Conn. schools

Updated: Thursday, 18 Jun 2009, 12:35 PM EDT
Published : Thursday, 18 JuAE 2A!n 2009, 6:01 AM EDT

By Kent Pierce

Norwich (WTNH) – Equipment that could potentially save lives will soon be required in schools across Connecticut.

Governor Jodi Rell was at Norwich Free Academy (NFA) this morning to sign a bill into law requiring that every school have an Automatic External Defibrillator, or AED. The AED is a device that can shock the heart back into proper rhythm.

Folks at NFA took up the defibrillator cause two years ago when a 15-year-old student athlete, Larry Pontbriant, collapsed during a run.

“Cardiac arrest can happen to anyone at any time, anywhere. You know are son was someone who was very – he was only 15 – very athletic. There was no indication that something like this would happen,” said Larry’s mother, Evelyn Pontbriant.

Larry’s family and the whole Norwich Free Academy family spent the last two years fundraising and lobbying to try to make defibrillators more available. Eventually their efforts brought the subject all the way to the Governor Rell’s office.

“I am very sorry for your loss and I know that this entire school shares the pain of what you’ve gone through, but also the joy of what you’ve done to honor and to remember your son,” Rell said at the bill signing ceremony.

All schools must have an AED on site by July 1. There’s a loophole, though. Schools don’t have to do it if there’s no money available.

Family Of Injured Teen Sues Swim Club For $40M
Family Claims Club’s Response To Son’s Needs Inadequate

POSTED: 4:40 pm EDT July 23, 2009
UPDATED: 7:31 pm EDT July 23, 2009

BALTIMORE — The family of a Baltimore County teenager who nearly drowned in a community pool three years ago has filed a $40 million lawsuit alleging negligence.

James Becker was 15 at the time of the incident. His parents, Mary and Bill Becker, said their son used to be an active, athletic teenager who was a member of a swim team.

James is currently in a wheelchair, unable to communicate and requires constant medical attention. He has to use a feeding tube and requires a tracheotomy to breathe.
The Becker family is suing the Woodcroft Swim Club for negligence.

The lawsuit blames Woodcroft Swimming Club and DRD Management for James’ injuries.

The family claims their son entered the swimming club on July 29, 2006, and in the process of nearly drowning was deprived of oxygen, resulting in severe global brain damage.

“The $40 million number is not a number we picked out of a hat. It is not a number for shock or awe. It is a number that is a realistic estimate of what James is going to require in medical expenses throughout the remainder of his life,” said attorney H. Briggs Bedigian.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys declined to provide details on why such an active teen — one who was also a member of a swim team — struggled in the water.

According to a Baltimore County police incident report, lifeguards responded immediately after observing Becker moving up and down and moving his arms by a ladder in the deep end of the pool.

The police report indicated a registered nurse assisted lifeguards in performing CPR.

Police wrote, “Mary Becker advised them that James had no known medical problems. Paramedics transported James to Franklin Square Hospital in cardiac arrest.”

“We were stunned because we don’t think we’ve done anything wrong,” said William Carrier, who represents the pool and its management.

The Baltimore County Fire Department even gave out seven citizen commendation awards to the pool staff and others for their actions that day.

Carrier contended that James suffered a heart attack after getting into the pool.

“We understand that it was cardiac arrest. The guard observed that and observed the struggling — observed the boy trying to reach for the ladder. (The guard) got down and pulled the boy out of the pool,” Carrier said.

“When we were at the pool, had things been in place, things would have been different. We are going to mandate that the law be changed,” Mary Becker said.

The Beckers will lobby the General Assembly to require pools to be equipped with defibrillators and to put more lifeguards in the stands. The current standard is one guard per 50 people.

Federal Grant To Bring AEDs To Schools

HEARTS Act Will Soon Go To U.S. Senate

POSTED: 6:30 pm EDT June 2, 2009

WASHINGTON — A bill to allow schools access to life-saving defibrillators was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives Tuesday.The Josh Miller HEARTS Act, or H.R. 1380, will establish a federal grant program that will enable elementary and secondary schools across the nation to access automated external defibrillators (AEDs). Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH) is sponsoring the bill. The legislation will be introduced later this week in the Senate by Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH).The legislation is named in memory of Josh Miller, a 15-year-old student from Sutton’s hometown of Barberton, Ohio. Miller suffered a sudden cardiac arrest during a high school football game. Although he had never shown any symptoms of heart problems, he collapsed shortly after he left the football field. By the time paramedics arrived, it was too late to save Miller.AEDs are portable medical devices that have been deployed in many public areas. CPR combined with early defibrillation using an AED more than doubles the odds of survival. Quick access to AEDs is crucial, as the odds of survival for a person suffering from sudden cardiac arrest decrease seven to ten percent for every minute that passes without treatment.”Like Josh, the vast majority of individuals who suffer sudden cardiac arrest do not display any prior signs of heart trouble, so immediate access to an AED is absolutely crucial in saving lives,” Sutton said. “I am pleased to report that Ohio Senator George Voinovich will be leading the charge in the Senate, and Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown will work with him to ensure its passage,” Sutton said.This bill is endorsed by the American Red Cross, the American Heart Association, the Heart Rhythm Society, the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Association, among other organizations.”There is no greater feeling of hopelessness than to see a child pass away before your eyes when there is nothing you can do,” said Ken Miller, Josh’s father. “I trust the bill will save a lot of Americans heartache that is just unnecessary. If there is a chance to save these children, we must do something,” said Miller.Schools receiving these grants must certify that five adults at the school have been trained in CPR and AED use, and they must also coordinate with the local paramedics and other emergency personnel to ensure those suffering from sudden cardiac arrest can have the quickest possible access to care.Its passage this week coincides with National CPR and AED Awareness Week.

$1 million donation for AEDs in Canada: Cardiac Science for the week of June 1

Sun, May 31, 2009

SCA survivors make the case for AEDs

When 17-year-old Curtis Rosenau went into cardiac arrest on the basketball court two years ago, he was fortunate. There was an automated external defibrillator (AED) available, and rescuers used it to re-start his heartbeat. The Edmonton teenager, who has Long QT Syndrome (a condition affecting heart rhythm) was on hand last week to see the Boston Pizza Foundation present $1 million to the Heart and Stroke Foundation for the purchase of AEDs.

“I think the most important thing I can learn from that night is how important CPR education is and how important AEDs are in public places,” Rosenau said.

Former Detroit Red Wings hockey player Jiri Fischer is also a spokesperson for the Heart and Stroke Foundation’s AED campaign. Fischer collapsed of sudden cardiac arrest on the bench during a game in 2005; the team’s medical staff used an AED to revive him.

In Santa Clara, California, the youth commission  held the “Jolt” benefit fashion show to raise money for the school district’s purchase of AEDs. Two sudden cardiac arrest incidents last fall— one in which a sports referee collapsed at a game and another in which a 12-year-old collapsed during a community event — vividly illustrated the value of AEDs, which were used in both rescues.

Oregon high school principal uses AED to save man

Schools hesitating to equip their campuses with an external defibrillator for fear of liability concerns, take note.

An Oregon driver whose passenger who’d collapse from sudden cardiac arrest pulled into a local high school, looking for help. It was a good decision: St. Helen’s High School is equipped with an AED and Nanette Hagen, the principal, was prepared to use one. She led school staff in the rescue, which restored the man’s heartbeat before firefighters arrived.

The SCA victim was taken to the hospital and is recovering, Hagen told a reporter for Kgw.com. She said that as a result of the experience she plans to train more of the school staff in use of the AED.

Florida couple donates $300,000 to equip patrol cards with AEDs

Fritz and Kathy Friday of Naples, Florida, donated $300,000 to the American Heart Association, requesting that the money go to Collier County Sheriff’s Office defibrillator program. The money will make is possible for the department to place AEDs in all patrol cars, and to buy batteries and pads for the devices. Kathy Friday is a sudden cardiac arrest survivor. She collapsed while working out at a local country club three years ago, and was revived by a personal trainer using an available AED.

Parent of SCA victim backs law to mandate AEDs at swimming pools

Mary Becker’s son, James,  suffered permanent neurological damage after he nearly drowned in a pool in Pikesville, Maryland, two years ago. Becker is now supporting State Senator Katherine Klausmeier, D-Baltimore County, who has proposed legislation that would require AEDs at all public pools in the state.

“Had a defibrillator been at the pool, James would not have suffered,” Becker told hometownannapolis.com. “His body and mind would not be locked inside.”

Becker and other pool safety advocates spoke at a public meeting last week just before the opening of many area pools. Cheryl Anne DeHart of Cardiac Science and Rachel Moyer, founder of Parent Heart Watch, attended the meeting and provided a demonstration of defibrillator use.

CHICAGO (Reuters)

Mon Oct 27, 2008

Firefighters and paramedics in Los Angeles who spent at least 20 minutes giving advanced life support to people with cardiac arrest before rushing them to the hospital were far more successful at getting hearts started again, U.S. researchers said on Monday.

Cardiac arrest occurs when the heart stops circulating blood. Survival rates for cardiac arrest that occurs outside of a hospital are very poor.

But firefighters and paramedics in Los Angeles who used the new protocol succeeded in restoring heart beats 29 percent of the time, a 70 percent improvement over the 17 percent success rates seen in a prior study in Los Angeles.

“We obviously want to improve upon these numbers, but this is a big step forward,” said Dr. Marc Eckstein of the University of Southern California and the Los Angeles Fire Department, who presented his findings at an American College of Emergency Physicians meeting in Chicago.

Eckstein said the new protocol calls for emergency workers to deliver 2 minutes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, before giving a shock with a defibrillator. And they call for at least 20 minutes of resuscitation on the scene, when chances of restoring a pulse are greatest.

Most often, people with cardiac arrest have a type of heart rhythm known as ventricular fibrillation, in which the heart quivers but does not pump blood.

If no shock is delivered in the first four minutes of this deadly rhythm, the heart stops altogether and it becomes much harder to get it restarted. During this phase, old-fashioned chest compressions can help push blood back into the heart, making it more likely to restart.

Eckstein and colleagues looked to see how patients in Los Angeles with cardiac arrest witnessed by a bystander fared in 2007 — after the new guidelines were adopted — compared with a similar group in 2000.

In addition to requiring longer life support on the scene, they also call for continuous, uninterrupted chest compressions and delivering no more than 10 breaths per minute to avoid hyperventilation, which studies have shown can reduce the chances of survival.

“It’s very encouraging that a change of protocol could show such a dramatic improvement,” Eckstein said in a statement.

He said the next step will be to collect hospital data to see how well people fared who were treated using this new method when they were discharged.