June is National CPR and AED Awareness Month - critical lifesaving skills emphasized

If someone all of a sudden collapses, the biggest hero of the day could be anyone walking by. June happens to National CPR and AED Awareness Month.

While CPR may seem scary, especially to conduct on a stranger, EMTs say it’s the most important step in saving a life.

Cardiac arrest can come out of nowhere and the next few minutes are crucial. During cardiac arrest, blood stops circulating and irreversible damage could be done in 4 to 6 minutes, which may not be enough time for EMTs to arrive.

“Early and high-quality CPR is probably the biggest thing in the chain of survival,” said Jeremy Legrey, firefighter and EMT for Rhinelander Fire Department. “It's the first step and is probably the most important that leads to much better outcomes.”

There are steps to follow when a person has stopped breathing. First is assessing whether the person is awake, unconscious, or unresponsive and not breathing.

While another person calls 9-1-1, check their pulse. If they are not responsive start doing chest compressions by innterlocking your hands, keep elbows straight, and make sure to push down hard, but also give time for the chest to rise back up. You want to be doing chest compressions at 100 beats per minute.

“Sometimes people go too fast or too slow,” said Dolan O’Malley, firefighter and EMT for Rhinelander Fire Department. “Oftentimes it's too fast, because people’s own heart rates start going and they start getting excited or nervous.”

AEDs can also help and can be found in public buildings. A common misconception is that CPR is for restarting the heart. It's actually to keep blood circulating to the brain. A simple CPR procedure can help give the person enough time until an ambulance arrives.

“You never know if it's going to happen,” said Elizabeth Ruhland, Public Health Nurse for the Oneida County Health Department. “I feel like it's beneficial to know CPR, because you never know when it's needed and it can help save someone’s life.”