New CPR Guidelines: Everyone Has a Role to Play

 

Under the new CPR guidelines, released just last month, a cell phone and a willingness to step in are key components to saving someone’s life. 

According to the new guidelines, bystanders not trained in CPR should immediately call 9-1-1, put the phone on speaker, and then provide "hands-only CPR," pushing hard and fast in the center of the chest, 100 to 120 times per minute. According to the American Heart Association, have a cellphone can be a literal lifesaver, as dispatchers are specifically trained to provide instructions for performing CPR. 

More than 326,000 people nationwide experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital each year, and about 90 percent of them die.  Administration of hands only CPR immediately can double or even triple a person’s chance of survival.  For more on this story, CLICK HERE. 

The latest American Heart Association guidelines, published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, highlight how quick action, proper training, use of technology and coordinated efforts can increase survival from cardiac arrest.  A leading cause of death in the United States, cardiac arrest occurs when the heart suddenly stops, usually due to an electrical malfunction in the heart that causes an irregular heartbeat and disrupts blood flow through the body.  Survival from sudden cardiac arrest depends upon immediate CPR and other actions starting with bystanders. 

With everyone having a role to play in the chain of survival, it is more important than ever that everyone be trained in how to perform Hands Only CPR.  For a video instruction of Hands Only CPR, CLICK HERE.  

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