Mississauga and EMS host CPR awareness event
On July 11, 2018, the City of Mississauga hosted a CPR awareness and family event referred to as #saugaCPR in partnership with Emergency Medical Services and the Canadian Red Cross at Celebration Square. This was a free family-friendly, community event intended to draw attention to the importance of learning Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation.
For 24 hours straight, the City held a CPR Marathon Relay with 100 teams of 4 volunteers doing 15 minutes of CPR on a manikin. The relay culminated in a free CPR course for hundreds of residents taught by EMS. SOS First Aid and SOS 4 Kids administrators, instructors and volunteers had teams involved in the relay and had a tent showcasing our first aid and safety courses for adults and children. It was an exciting and worthwhile event!
CPR is an important life skill and an easy one to learn. In 2017, in Mississauga, Peel Paramedics responded to 506 sudden cardiac arrests. In 109 (22%) of those incidents, members of the Mississauga community acted to save a life by performing CPR (Cardio-pulmonary resuscitation) and getting an AED (Automated External Defibrillator). These numbers included 50 family members and 59 strangers.
The main message is that CPR saves lives and anyone can learn the skill. When a bystander starts doing compressions on a person who has suffered sudden cardiac arrest, the likelihood of survival is 2-3 times higher. When paramedics are dispatched to attend to a person without vital signs (not breathing and pulseless), it can be several minutes before EMS arrives. When a bystander starts CPR and an AED is used right away, before paramedics arrive, survival rates are significantly higher. The act of compressing on the chest helps to push oxygen-rich blood to the vital organs including the brain. Oxygen helps to prevent the body’s cells from dying. The shock delivered from an AED will attempt to retore the victim’s heart to a normal rhythm.
Every minute counts when it comes to bystander CPR and use of an AED. With every minute that passes without using a defibrillator, the survival rate drops by 10%. Depending on traffic and other factors, an ambulance can take 8-12 minutes before arriving on the scene. With no CPR and no defibrillation, the likelihood of survivial is practically zero.
CPR can be learned in just a few short hours. SOS First Aid conveniently offers courses 2-3 times per week next door to the City of Missississauga building in the Living Arts Centre. You and your family members can learn this life saving skill together and possibly save the life of a loved one, a co-worker, a friend or a stranger. Be the the one who acts! Take a CPR course today!
