MTEMS Promotes CPR Knowledge During Fair
Multi-Township EMS is continuing to provide its One Heart “Hands Helping Hearts” Program to improve sudden cardiac arrest survival rates in our community. Medics are stationing themselves at the Kosciusko County Community Fair all week to help gain awareness of how easy the process to save a life really is.
The One Heart “Hands Helping Hearts” Program was launched in May during National EMS Week. According to MTEMS, it is shockingly simple to save a life. Every year more than 300,000 Americans die from sudden cardiac arrest – a condition in which the heart unexpectedly stops beating. It can happen anywhere, to anyone, at any time, even to those with optimal heart health. And when it occurs – seconds count.
Led by MTEMS – The One Heart Program is an initiative that is designed to train laypersons in CPR. When you learn CPR you are more likely to perform CPR quicker, which will improve community cardiac arrest survival rates. For every minute that a person’s heart has stopped, their chance of survival decreases by 10 percent. MTEMS has a goal to teach 10 percent (5,000 people) of the population of our community CPR this year.
On Monday, Stacey Page and Alyssa Richardson tried their skills at CPR and will say it is a serious program that everyone can and should learn.
Each year, on average, 40 people in our community suffer sudden cardiac arrest. The earlier SCA is recognized and the earlier chest compressions are started, the higher the likelihood of survival. Bystander CPR can keep blood flowing throughout the body until emergency teams arrive. Studies have shown that bystander CPR can more than double the chance of survival if it is started within minutes on an SCA victim.
MTEMS has partnered with Kosciusko Community Hospital, Kerlin Motors and Zale Drugs to launch the One Heart Program. This program was developed by MTEMS to improve the SCA survival rates in Kosciusko County. MTEMS has found, through data collection, areas where we as a community need to improve to increase the survival rate from SCA.