Critical Care - AED Proves Itself As a "Back to Life" Machine

A few years back I was driving home with my children in a blizzard. The drive was slow and visibility was low. I was veering off on a side road when I noticed people in the road frantically trying to flag down drivers looking for help. I pulled off and enquired what the emergency was. The stranger pointed to a man lying on the ground, "that man fell asleep while plowing his driveway. We can't seem to wake him up." I knew immediately that this man was not sleeping and definitely needed my help. I ran over and felt for a pulse. Seconds felt like minutes. I ordered someone to call 911 and another bystander to go to the house and see if anyone was home. I jumped into action and started CPR immediately. I counted compressions out loud 1-30 to keep focused on the task at hand. I pinched his nose and gave him my breath hoping that he could regain his own.
Soon a police officer arrived with an AED in his trunk. We quickly opened the defibrillator and applied the patches as the voice prompts described. Soon we heard the words "shock advised... Charging." The orange button flashed, I checked to be sure everyone was clear and I pushed the button that would save this man's life. It wasn't long and EMS arrived and took over. Mr. Smith had suffered a heart attack and was whisked to emergency surgery soon after his arrival to the hospital. Today Mr. Smith lives to tell of his experience. He was able to walk his daughter down the aisle and shortly thereafter he held his first grandson in his arms. Life is a beautiful gift.
We take life for granted until something tragic happens. It takes about three hours of your life to learn CPR and even less time to learn how to operate an Automated External Defibrillator. American Heart Association and American Red Cross are both great places to learn how to perform CPR and even more importantly how to use an AED. Automated External Defibrillators are almost everywhere you go these days and are easy to operate. It is estimated that 1000 people per day have a sudden cardiac arrest and could have a higher chance for survival if only someone who witnessed the arrest knew CPR and how to operate an AED. In reality only 5% of the estimated 350,000 people per year will survive. Let's increase the statistics by being prepared.
Find a local CPR course and if you work at a business, church, or drive an emergency vehicle make sure that you are equipped with an AED. The life saved could be someone closer then you think.