AHA Says Companies Should Invest in Safety

With 61 million Americans suffering from cardiovascular disease and nearly 1 million of them dying of it each year, the American Heart Association is urging businesses to purchase an Automated External Defibrillator and train their staffs to operate the user-friendly lifesaving device.

One-third of deaths from cardiovascular disease (300,000-400,000) are due to sudden cardiac arrest.

Katie Marsico, health initiatives specialist for the local American Heart Association, said the risk of death increases the longer the heart is stopped. The best way to get a heartbeat going again or stabilized is with an electric shock.

An AED will cost $1,400 to $6,000 depending on the features included. Training is required, but the machines are simple to use, Marsico said.

Businesses shouldn’t be concerned about the liability to use an AED, but they might be liable if they don’t have one, she said.

“Especially as it becomes more and more the standard of care,” Marsico added.

A number of states, including Arkansas, have legal protection against liability for those trying to save a life using an AED. Some states, including Illinois, are considering tax incentives for businesses that purchase and train staff on the machines.

The AED is important because a victim in sudden cardiac arrest is more likely to survive if a shock is administered within three minutes of the attack, Marsico said. Ten percent fewer survive with each minute that defibrillation is delayed.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, a division of the U.S. Department of Labor, said about 400 workplace deaths from cardiac arrest are reported to OSHA annually.

“Assuming an average time to defibrillation of five minutes would produce a 40 percent survival rate, 160 lives per year could be saved,” according to a bulletin recently released by OSHA. “Employers should consider use of AEDs at their worksites to reduce the time to defibrillation with the goal of improving survival.”

A recent study showed that the highest number of sudden cardiac incidents occur on Mondays and the fewest occur over the weekends, according to the Red Cross. About 150 million Americans spend at least 40 hours at their jobs during the work week.

Deb Henderson, director of community health and wellness at the Jones Center for Families in Springdale, provides information about AEDs during CPR classes. Henderson explained in one recent class that AEDs are easy to use, and she urged class participants to get trained and promote the purchase of AEDs in the community. The Jones Center has AEDs available and has already saved a life with one, Henderson said.

“If you can give them that shock in two minutes, there’s more of a chance they can survive,” she said.

The machine provides voice commands on the CPR process and provides an electric shock if needed.