Americans spend a lot of time at work. While at work they want to feel safe from injury or even death. An effective safety and health program is comprised of many elements, including management leadership and employee participation, workplace analysis, accident and record analysis, hazard prevention and control, emergency response and safety and health training.
Aside from the possible litigious implications, deciding whether to implement a safety program that includes an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) for the protection of your employees and patrons can mean the difference between life and death. There are up to 1,000 incidences and at least 600 deaths every day from sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). Caused by an abnormal heart rhythm, SCA differs from a heart attack in that it arrives without warning and leaves its victim unconscious within seconds; death follows in minutes.
Sudden cardiac arrest is survivable with the right course of action. Many people and businesses do not know there is a way to prevent death and provide protection. Matthew Barrer, President and CEO of CardioReady, offers five things to consider when implementing a workplace safety program with cardio emergency preparedness:
1. Visible Management Leadership. Top management must demonstrate its commitment by following all safety rules and giving visible support to the safety and health efforts of others. Management’s attitude towards job safety and health will be reflected by its employees’ behavior. If management is not interested in preventing employee injury and illness, nobody else is likely to be. And, demonstrating the commitment to employee safety and well being is a low-cost, value-added employee benefit.
2. Training, Maintenance and Compliance. The implementation of an emergency readiness program that includes an AED requires a certain level of preparation and upkeep. Persons intending to use the equipment must be trained and then refresher trainings administered on a regular basis. In addition, the equipment needs to be registered with the local EMS, properly maintained and stored and all usage must be properly logged. Hiring an external consultant to handle the front and backend logistics is helpful.
3. Protection from Liability. The fact is, as awareness of the new generation of AEDs grows, companies and organizations face a greater threat of liability if they aren’t prepared to respond to a cardiac emergency. Furthermore, there are laws in place to protect persons using AEDs. Typically referred to as Good Samaritan protections, they are designed to render most laypersons exempt from liability in emergency situations requiring a defibrillator to save someone’s life.
4. Sudden Cardiac Arrest can happen to anybody, anywhere, anytime. SCA can happen for multiple reasons, including blunt chest trauma, i.e. during a sporting event. AEDs must be strategically deployed in all public places and offices where they are easily accessible by trained persons. In this way, the goal of rapid intervention can be met.
5. Early Defibrillation – victims are essentially already dead. The New England Journal of Medicine reported that rapid defibrillation using an AED can improve survival following cardiac arrest. Researchers studied SCA in casinos and found that survival was 74% for those who received defibrillation within three minutes and only 49% for those who received it after three minutes. For this quick response to occur, AEDs must be placed in public areas.
Melissa Gillespie is the Corporate Communications Manager for
CardioReady. For more information about implementing a cardiac
emergency readiness program visit the Web site at
www.cardioready.com.
