It’s well established that young Americans are at alarming risk to Sudden Cardiac Arrest with approximately 7,000 deaths of school age children each year in the U.S. These very tragic and most sudden losses occur in athletics, on the playground, in the hallway and just about anywhere on a schools property. It has taken far too long and far too many losses of young lives to initiate change and to implement school AED mandates.
These tragic deaths can be prevented or at least minimize conducting heart screenings for students. Beyond those efforts it is imperative that schools implement AED programs which including deploying life-saving AED defibrillators along with CPR/AED training for faculty and staff.
According to the SCAF (Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation) the following are the States who have implemented mandates:
• Alabama: Public schools serving grades K-12
• Arkansas: Schools
• Connecticut: All schools, higher education athletic departments
• Florida: All public high schools offering athletics
• Georgia: All public high schools
• Hawaii: All public and private schools including colleges
• Kentucky: Public and private schools and their athletic events
• Louisiana: Any institution of higher education that competes in athletics, high schools with interscholastic athletics, if funding is available
• Maine: Schools serving grades K-12 and at school-sponsored athletic events
• Maryland: Schools and school-sponsored athletic events
• Massachusetts: All public schools
• Nevada: Public schools
• New Jersey: All public and private K-12 schools
• New York: Schools
• North Dakota: Public and private schools
• Oregon: Public and private schools, colleges and schools of higher education
• South Carolina: High schools
• Tennessee: Public schools
• Texas: All schools, including charter schools.
Bravo to all the States who have implemented legislation for Automated External Defibrillators as well as all those districts who have invested in these devices because it’s the right thing to do. A standard of care has been established through the adoption of public defibrillators and it’s wonderful to hear the growing number of stories about teachers and staff saving young lives with early CPR and early defibrillation.
Here at AED One-Stop Shop we have a special focus on helping to create well-designed AED programs for public, charter and private schools. And by well-designed we mean that the placement of AEDs is ample for each school so that response times can be less than 3 minutes. We also mean that the AEDs checked for readiness and that those results are tracked and documented. And lastly, that employees are trained to minimize any intimidation factor and increase their general competence and confidence in using the life-saving device. For help and guidance call 855-677-2337 and learn more by watching this very short Video about AEDs. And if you’ve already purchased AEDs but lack in some areas of the program, we can help you too.
