We have seen the rapid succession of AED units on different establishments. Today, more and more establishments are buying AED units not just to follow the rules of the law but to further protect their customers. See that this cause of death is not an infectious one that can be treated with antibiotics and the progression can be slowed, cardiac arrest is sudden and you never know when it's going to strike.

The state or Oregon recently passed a law required all business that employ over 50 people to have a defibrillator on site.The laws passed recently have shown to be successful at saving lives. Don't you think that now is the time to request all apartment and condominium owners to put up an AED unit present on their respective buildings to protect the lives of their tenants? Read this dreadful story about cardiac death that happened in an apartment and be the judge why these multi-storey living areas should have life saving devices.

Apartments
The aforementioned actor was only 28 years old and had a young 3 year old daughter at the time of his death. . If only an AED unit is present on Heath's hotel room, he could still be here doing movies.

The above situation only proves that no matter what status you have in life, cardiac arrest can choose anyone to attack. Although, this doesn't point out that the lack of AED unit is what caused the death of Mr. Ledger, having an AED present on the apartment could still save his life.

November 21, 2009 around 10 pm, Snyder was eating supper at her boyfriend's apartment when the unexpected thing happened.} The 911 team arrived when Tara's boyfriend found her without a pulse and called 911. The team immediately responded to this emergency by hooking her up to a defibrillator. The defibrillator was used to stabilize Tara bringing her back to life.

If not for the AEDs of 911, Tara could have been dead leaving her three kids with no mom. This scenario only proves that cardiac arrest and AEDs are two opposing teams making the later one the savior amongst all.

Hotels
Hotels are also rapidly deploying portable defibrillators. The San Diego Sheraton recently installed the devices and trained their staff. So far they have already save six victims of SCA. The Omni Penn Hotel was pleased to know they had installed the devices when a wedding worker was impacted by SCA and an AED was brought to him. Within minutes the victim was revived and within a couple of weeks back at work. The devices don't need to be installed in evey room. Locating them in public areas such as lobbies, meeting rooms, and banquet halls will suffice. According to reports, roughly 20 percent of all hotels now have AED's on their premises.

Sudden Cardiac Arrest can occur quickly and a person can be dead within minutes. What if you are located on a far away apartment with fenced gates and multi story floors? These issues can be easily remedied with an AED onsite. Even if you live on the 12th floor, if the apartment has an AED on its 7th floor, survival is still possible. Even if you live on a far flung area and the rescue team is not feasible around, having an AED unit is enough to get your heart beating once again.

Over the last few decades we have seen a trend where people are moving out of the rural areas and into densely populated cities. As a result, it has made it easier to deploy automated external defibrillators conveniently located near large groups of people. Hotels, condos, and apartments are densely populated and are perfect locations to deploy AED's and are highly suggested.

Congratulations on owning the Phlips HeartStart Onsite defibrillator; one of the most advanced portable defibrillator on the market today.  The Philips Onsite works best when paired with the HeartStart Adult SMART Pads.  The pads are very easy to use but during an emergency situation the care giver can often forget their training or become frantic.  If you remember the easy steps in this article you will be able to install the pads and deliver a shock if necessary.

The pads are located on the front of the defibrillator.  To access the pads there is a PULL handle at the top.  Pulling the pad from the Onsite will automatically turn the defibrillator on and set it into motion.  The care giver will being receiving audible instructions by first letting you know the pads have been properly placed on the patient and the device is receiving data.

The pads are very easy to use and along with the audible instructions and illustration on the front cover will help you easily install the pads on the patient.  The pads are not specific to left, right, top or bottom.  However, you must put one pad above the right breast and the second pad below the left breast as illustrated on the pad cartridge.   Always refer to manual provided to you by the manufacturer or take a certification class from an authorized trainer.  For your convenience we have provided the following steps to help you through the process.

1. Remain Calm - More than any other step this is probably the most important.  If you're not calm and instead erratic you won't be thinking normally and could make mistakes that lead to an unthinkable situation
2. Request that 911 emergency services are called to the scene.
3. Pull the green handle of the SMART Pads Cartridge
4. Remove the clothes from the patient's chest.  Rip or cut if necessary
5. Peel off the protective film seal from the pads and place the first pad on the bare skin on the right side above the breast and place the second pad on the right side below the breast.
6. The Onsite will automatically detect that the pads are attached to the patient and begin analyzing the patient's heart rhythm to determine if a shock is required.
7. If a shock is required the caution light turns a solid orange and the Shock button starts flashing.  The defibrillator's will provide an audible warning telling the caregiver and those around not touch the patient while a shock is sent from the device.

The HeartStart OnSite defibrillator will not deliver a shock unless you press the flashing orange Shock button. If you do not press the Shock button within 30 seconds after the device tells you to, it will disarm itself.

 After you have removed the onsite defibrillator pads from the patient they must be discarded.  They cannot be reused.  To guarantee that your Onsite defibrillator is ready for the next emergency you should immediately purchase new pads from an authorized Philips retailer. 

In addition, Philips Adult HeartStart Onsite pads have a two year shelf life meaning that once they have expired you must immediately purchase new ones.   If you own a defibrillator you should regularly check our device to verify that it's functioning properly and the pads are within their expiration date.  If the pads have expired, or are near expiration replace them immediately.

It's easy to forget how to use your Philip SMART Pads during an emergency, but if you remain calm and follow the verbal and audible voice prompts from the Onsite AED you will be able to easily place the pads on the patient and begin saving a life.

The Philips Onsite Defibrillator and Philips Adult SMART Pads model M5071A are easy to use but you should always consult your manual and seek expert advice from an authorized trainer. The information contained in these topics is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, it is provided for educational purposes only. You assume full responsibility for how you choose to use this information. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider before starting any new treatment or discontinuing an existing treatment. Talk with your healthcare provider about any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Nothing contained in these topics is intended to be used for medical diagnosis or treatment.

Before the release of the new and revised CPR guideline, we are following the traditional A-B-C of CPR which stands for airway, breathing and circulation. Today, the American Heart Association advised the public that instead of following the obsolete A-B-C of CPR, the new acronym of C-A-B has been released. C-A-B stands for chest compression, airway and breathing.

But for those of us who don’t understand what clearing the airway really means, this might result into great confusion and never ending debate. According to AHA, not all bystanders are capable of immediately clearing the airway of the victim that usually results into a “time wasting moment” which is very unacceptable to save the life of the patient. Instead of taking so much time maneuvering the body to open the airway, chest compression should be started. To whichever way you believe is much more effective may it be the A-B-C or C-A-B, we cannot deny the fact that clearing the airway is indeed necessary to save the victim’s life.

Sudden Cardiac Arrest usually results into a great need of the body for oxygen; same reason can also be applied that’s why time is of the essence when it comes to CPR.  Since the heart is damaged and failed to supply oxygenated blood on our body, alternative source of oxygen should be given to the victim. Our body cannot survive without oxygen most especially the brain which only takes 3-5 minutes before it can bring permanent damage or sometimes even death. Considering these vital reasons and more, clearing the airway should never be neglected on CPR aside from the infamous chest compression.

There are two ways which you can utilize to open the airway of the patient. First is the head tilt – chin lift maneuver and jaw thrust. You can do this by following the instructions below:

1. Head tilt – chin lift maneuver – place one of your hands to the victim’s forehead and gently apply an upward firm back pressure to push the head back. Using the fingers of your other hand, place it under the bony part of the chin and lift it forward to open the airway.
2. Jaw thrust – kneel down to the patient and grasp the angle of his lower jaw and lift it both up and away to temporarily displace it on the mandible thus opening the airway.

With the above ways of opening the airway, head tilt – chin lift maneuver is safer to perform than jaw thrust. Jaw thrust is more invasive and requires highly specialized skill for it to be performed correctly.

Most of the time, the tongue of the patient is being displaced backward following a Sudden Cardiac Arrest that usually results into a partial or complete blocking of the airway passage. This is the main reason why clearing the airway should be done FIRST before giving a ventilation. If you try to give ventilation without opening or clearing the airway, things will be useless. Note that there is a huge difference between opening the airway from ventilation, opening the airway means removing any obstruction from the airway passage (tongue on SCA) while ventilation means providing an alternative source of oxygen for the body such as mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Whether you will be following the traditional A-B-C of CPR or the new C-A-B, remember that clearing the airway is very important to make CPR successful and reliable. Doing chest compressions will only revitalize the heart but it doesn’t guarantee good supply of oxygen to the brain thus airway and breathing are both important to increase the survival rate of the victim.

The best answer to battle sudden cardiac arrest is to invest in an automated external defibrillator, or better known as an AED.  These devices will monitor the heart rhythm  and will provide a shock if necessary.

The Philips HeartStart FRx is one of the most advanced defibrillators available on the commercial market. It has superior ease yet rugged enough for everyday use making the device a favorite of first responders.

However, what about when you’re not using the FRx and it’s stored safely in the aed wall cabinet or the back or a police car.  Even when the device is not being use the FRx is contnousluly running self diagnostics to verify that it will be ready when needed.

The HeartStart FRx will automatically perform daily tests on its critical components including the battery, pads, and internal circuits.  After running its daily self-diagnostic, if the device finds any issues it will alert you by “chirping” and the I-button will flash until someone responds.

When you respond to the “chirping” from the device, your first step is to press the I-button.  Once pressed, the FRx will provide audio instructions as to what needs to be addressed.  If you’re battery model # has been depleted, it will let you know. 

You can also manually test the defibrillator at any time by simply removing the battery for 5 seconds and then reinstalling it.  The entire self-test process will take less than one minute to complete.  It is recommended that you only run an entire self test in this method once in a while because it will drain the battery faster.

It is recommended that you run the battery insertion self-test only:

• When you first purchase your defibrillator
• After each use the defibrillator should be tested
• After replacing the battery
• Anytime you think the defibrillator may have been damaged

Special Note: If the FRx turns off when you install the battery instead of running the battery insertion self-test, check to be sure that the pads case is not open. If the pads case is open, the FRx assumes that it may be in use and so will not run the self-test.

There are two batteries available for the Philips FRx.  There is an FRx Aviation Battery model # 98903139301 that is perfect those who will store or operate the device in airplanes.  There is also the standard lithium manganese dioxide that is available for those who will not use the device in an plane.  

On October 18, 2010 the American Heart Association issued revised guidelines making it much easier to administer CPR when someone suffers sudden cardiac arrest. Sudden cardiac arrest is when the heart stops, or the patient stops breathing, or stops breathing normally. 

Today's change was minor and related to the order for performing CPR.  The previous order was best known as the ABC method where the care giver A) Airway B) Breathing C) Compressions.  However, today's announcement changed that order where now it's CAB.

2010 CPR Guidelines Revised Order
     C) Compressions
     A) Airway
     B) Breathing

When administering chest compressions, start by pushing hard and fast on the center of the chest.  Try to push down at least 2 inches and at a speed of one hundred times per minute.  If you're untrained in the proper administration of CPR, keep performing compressions until help or an AED arrives.  The new model makes it much easier for the care giver, even if not trained in CPR, to render assistance.

The American Heart Association says everyone from professionals to bystanders who use standard CPR should begin with chest compressions instead of opening the victim's airway and breathing into their mouth first.

This is just a quick overview and for more information about CPR training please see the American Heart Association website and for more information about which automated external defibrillator is best for your business, school, or community please contact AED LifePower at (800) 275-5942.