JUST THE FACTS
Cardiac arrest, which is when the heart stops beating unexpectedly, and heart attacks can often lead to a cardiac arrest. Here are some facts on the dangers of doing nothing if someone is having a cardiac arrest:
- Fewer than 10 percent of victims survive. Nationally it's around 7 percent while in the Cincinnati region it's around 10 percent. Survival rates decrease by 7 to 10 percent for every minute without CPR.
- Nationally, only 41 percent of bystanders deliver "bystander CPR" — which is only chest compressions — and that's only 29 percent in Cincinnati.
- Waiting on emergency medical personnel to arrive, which could take 4 to 6 minutes, cuts a person's survival chance in half.
- Two-thirds of cardiac arrests happen at home, and the average age is 60 years old. The upward spike begins at 50.
Sources: University Center Medical Center and Take10Cincinnati.com
Only 10 percent of people survive sudden cardiac arrest, and the data shows survival chances drop significantly if nothing is done.
That is a main reason why the General Assembly passed a bill requiring Ohio students be taught chest compression-only CPR and how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED) at some point during their high school career. The Ohio Senate unanimously passed House Bill 113 Wednesday, and the Ohio House approved the bill by an 85-8 vote about five weeks earlier.
With a few exceptions — by written excuse from a parent or if a student is incapable because of a disability — the bill requires students at public high schools and charter schools beginning in the 2017-2018 school year be given CPR and AED hands-on instruction.
Dr. Jason McMullan, an emergency medicine physician at University of Cincinnati Medical Center, said if sudden cardiac arrest happens, which is when a person’s heart unexpectedly stops beating, it could take emergency medical personnel on average 4 to 6 minutes to arrive on scene. If nothing is done, the chances for surviving a cardiac arrest are cut in half.
“Cardiac arrest is one of those diseases that we need pre-EMS, and that’s where the lay public can come in,” he said. More than 360,000 people annually in the United States experience sudden cardiac arrest outside of a hospital setting.
About two-thirds of cardiac arrests occur at home, and the average age of people sustaining them is 60, and McMullan said the upward spike begins with those who are 50. This is the age range of people who have high school-aged children.
“It’s perfect training to the perfect population,” he said, saying high school students, and possibly their friends, will be at home with parents and witness a cardiac arrest, which a heart attack can lead to cardiac arrest.
According to state law, Ohio already requires schools to teach first aid training, which includes CPR, safety and fire prevention. But Senate Majority Whip Sen. Gayle Manning, R-North Ridgeville, who guided the bill in the Senate said the hands-on aspect isn't currently required. She said it's pretty much a video showing the idea.
“This is going to save lives across the state of Ohio,” said Sen. Manning. “Anybody that has taught, or anybody that has ever been in school, or have kids in school, you know that hands-on makes a huge difference. Thirty minutes will give a high-retention rate because of the hands-on (requirement).”
House Bill 113 was jointly sponsored by Reps. Cheryl Grossman, R-Grove City, and Nathan Manning, R-North Ridgeville, but it didn’t receive unanimous support. Rep. Nino Vitale, R-Urbana, was one of eight Republicans to vote against the bill.
“The spirit of the bill is good — obviously CPR and using AEDs are an exceptional idea — (but) the question I have is this good government? What this bill does is it forces all schools in Ohio to spend money, and it forces all school to change their curriculum.”
Fairfield City School Board member Dan Hare, who has sat on the Butler County Heart Association board for nearly 16 years, fully supports the bill, and if Fairfield wasn’t already teaching it can see this being an “unfunded mandate.” But preparing students for real life situation also includes practical use of first aid.
“One of the roles we play in education is teaching life skills, and certainly CPR and first aid are life skills, they’re life-saving skills,” he said.
And that’s what Grossman said in April, saying this bill “will have an enormous impact on the lives of those who need it most by training the next generation.”
McMullan said as a member of the St. Bernard-Elmwood Place Board of Education in suburban Cincinnati, he understands the concerns of adding costs to public education requirements. But anything that would had significant costs isn’t in the bill: no certification is require, and the instructor doesn’t need to be specialized or certified.
The use of an AED device requires no training, which is why they are easily accessible at most any government building or school, and in fact the device gives step by step instructions.
To help teach more people how to provide bystander CPR, he’s part of an organization called Take 10 Cincinnati, which provides free training in 10 minutes, and is a UC Health-sponsored initiative.
McMullan said there are many reasons why people don’t start CPR, and among the reasons is they fear they’ll do it wrong. He said that shouldn’t be a worry.
“The only bad CPR is not doing CPR,” he said. “There are certainly standards that we strive for but we shouldn’t let perfect stand in the way of good enough.”
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