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June 1-7, 2008 will mark the first National CPR and AED Awareness Week with the goal of encouraging states, cities and towns to establish organized programs that provide CPR and AED training and increase public access to AEDs.
Congress has declared the first week of June each year as National CPR and AED Awareness Week. The bill, which was introduced by Representatives Randy Kuhl (R-NY) and Dan Boren (D-OK) and Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Russ Feingold (D-WI), passed by unanimous consent before the end of the congressional session in December 2007.
National CPR and AED Awareness Week will help shine a light on sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). It is estimated that at least 164,000 Americans experience SCA outside of a hospital each year and more than 95 percent of them die before reaching the hospital. But studies show that quick application of proper CPR and defibrillation can make a difference and save lives. In cities where defibrillation is provided within five to seven minutes, the survival rate from sudden cardiac arrest is as high as 49 percent.
"Establishing a National CPR and AED Awareness Week is an essential step toward ensuring communities across the country are able to properly respond if tragedy strikes," Sen. Feingold said. "The more we can do to educate our communities on how to conduct CPR and operate AEDs, the more lives we can save."
"This legislation will help Americans save lives at the community level," said Rep. Kuhl. "If you suffer sudden cardiac arrest outside of a hospital, you have a five percent chance of survival. It doesn't have to be that way. If we can train more Americans in performing CPR and using AEDs, we can save more lives."
The passing of the National CPR and AED Awareness resolution will help the major training organizations' to accomplish their shared vision of having all Americans to be within four minutes of an AED device and someone trained to use it. Scientific studies show that for every minute defibrillation is delayed; there is an approximate 10 percent decrease in the likelihood of resuscitation. |
