CPR training interest increases in wake of football player’s heart attack

When a person has a cardiac arrest, survival depends on immediately receiving cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation from someone nearby.

According to the American Heart Association, about 90 percent of people who suffer cardiac arrests outside of a hospital die. CPR, especially if performed immediately, can double, or triple a cardiac arrest victim’s chance of survival. Association data shows that bystander CPR is only performed 46 percent of the time.

Witnessing Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin’s cardiac arrest during the Jan. 2 Monday Night Football game, inspired many people to seek out CPR education and related resources.

The Heart Association reports a 620 percent increase in public interest for CPR education/training and a 145 percent increase in webpage views seeking information on CPR education, statistics and information on the use of automatic external defibrillators.

At Your Place EMS training is a local AHA and ASHI affiliate in Douglas County.

Founder and lead instructor Kelly Pettit has been providing public and health care provider CPR and First-Aid training classes for more than 20 years. For members of the public, Pettit’s firm offers training in CPR and AED, BLS for health care providers, first-aid, and Hands-Only CPR and AED use.

In hands-only CPR, the rescuer provides chest compressions and does not provide rescue breaths. Hands-only CPR keeps blood flowing to a person's brain after their heart stops beating and greatly increases a cardiac arrest victim’s chances of survival until emergency medical services arrive.

At Your Place EMS training will soon be offering training to the public for the stop the bleed program, a national awareness campaign that trains the public to help control severe bleeding in an emergency before professional help arrives.

You can view the At Your Place website at www.atyourplaceemstraining.com to see offered training services or to schedule a class.