It’s ironic that we live in an age of advancing medical technology and knowledge, yet our overall public health continues to decline. Every day, lives are needlessly lost because of the lack of access to immediate life-saving first aid.
Today, we have the ability and technology that can make first aid readily available where it is needed the most. It can be found in an innovative new product developed under the HeartRespond Initiative – the Safety Kit.
First Aid That Saves Lives
Developed by the Centers for Health and Public Safety,
the Safety Kit brings emergency first aid for public use into the 21st Century.
The Safety Kit is packed with essential first aid supplies to respond to almost any emergency at work, in school, in public areas, even at home. It provides everything needed to treat injuries until emergency services can arrive.
Each Kit contains an AED, or automated external defibrillator. The AED is designed to be operated by anyone. It features on-demand voice prompts — known as “On-Demand CPR” — to clearly guide users through each step of an emergency and restart normal heart rhythm.
Providing Care Where Needed
Immediate response to an emergency is critical to maintaining life until professional responders arrive. The goal of the HeartRespond Initiative is to place life-giving first aid like the Safety Kit in locations where such emergencies are most likely to happen.
These locations include:
• Businesses
• Offices
• Schools
• Churches
• Hotels
• Restaurants
• Retail stores
• Sports facilities
• Public facilities
Safety Kits are designed to be stored in an accessible spot and are easily recognized by the distinctive red or blue cases. Portable and well organized, the kits allow users to bring the first aid to the victims and immediately begin treatment to prolong life until emergency services arrive on scene.
Creating an Affordable Response
Meeting the need to place life-saving care where it is needed the most is where the HeartRespond Initiative is breaking new ground. To be successful, it will require a renewed sense of community responsibility that can draw businesses and organizations together for the benefit of all.
The return on the investment in HeartRespond Initiative can be calculated not in dollars, but in lives saved. The modest cost to place Safety Kits in proper locations can be offset through innovative programs such as:
• HeartRespond Adopt-a-School
Businesses and community individuals select a school and raise funds to purchase a Safety Kit for placement in the school.
• Fundraiser for a Purpose
Groups and organizations mount a fundraising campaign with Responsible Fundraising, a national fundraising effort that generates up to a 50 percent profit on sales of affordable first aid kits and supplies.
• HeartRespond Donations
Local organizations solicit donations from the community to underwrite the purchase and placement of Safety Kits and AEDs.
• Participate in the AED Partnership Program
Through HeartRespond, businesses, leaders and individuals from the community can join together in a partnership to identify local facilities where placement of Safety Kits have the most impact and then work to purchase and place the kits.
The Next Steps
We invite you to visit the Centers for Health and Public Safety online at www.lifesavingresources.org to learn more about the HeartRespond Initiative and the Safety Kits. There, you can learn more about Sudden Cardiac Arrest, AEDs and the technology available that can make the difference in thousands of lives across this country.
Or, contact George Wheeler, CEO of the Center, at 888-917-2477 to discuss ways to provide life-saving first aid and technology in your community.
George's start for preventing unnecessary deaths from sudden cardiac arrest took root in August 2001. His son, a Northwestern University football player, died from sudden cardiac arrest following a conditioning workout with the Northwestern football team.
