Source: KeraNews.org
Public AEDs Now Accessible Across Carrollton Parks
It was while attending her son’s soccer game in an adjacent town that Kim Bybee, parks manager for the city of Carrollton, got an idea that she hopes will save lives. She saw that the park’s sports complex had what looked like a cabin —and inside was an Automated External Defibrillator (AED).
“I thought it was kind of a neat concept,” Bybee said. “Because the way we were running our AEDs, they were in the concession restroom buildings, but they were only accessible if they were being staffed.”
Bybee liked the idea of having AEDs available to the public 24/7 if an incident occurred.
“I went to my counterparts at Fire and Rescue and brought up the idea,” she said, “and we kind of started looking into it to see what options we had,” she said.
Fast forward to two years later, and Carrollton has installed eight SaveStations around city. Each one contains an Avive Connect AED that automatically notifies emergency dispatchers when the AED is deployed. By placing the SaveStations in public parks and recreational areas, city officials hope to bridge the critical gap between the time 911 is called and when EMTs arrive.
Carrollton Fire Rescue Chief Michael Thomson said the Avive component of the AED is a game changer when every second counts.
“Every minute that goes by your chance of survival drops,” he said. “We’re trying to minimize the time that it takes for people to start by standard CPR as well as to initiate a defibrillation if needed, so that that person hopefully has been resuscitated prior to the fire department and the paramedics arriving.”
To read more visit: KeraNews.org
Additional Sources:
