How AEDs Work: A Scenario

How AEDs Work: A Scenario
A worker collapses in the office from what may be cardiac arrest.

According to the American Heart Association’s chain-of-survival process, someone should immediately call emergency medical services, and an employee trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) should assess the victim. If the worker shows no breathing and no pulse, the trained employee should start chest compressions and ventilations (i.e., CPR). CPR’s purpose is to deliver oxygen to the blood and to manually pump the oxygenated blood to the brain and other organs. CPR provides basic life support until advanced-life-support providers can take over. However, if the victim is in cardiac arrest, performing CPR will not be enough.

For a person experiencing a sudden cardiac emergency in which the heart goes into ventricular fibrillation—a sudden electrically abnormal state—the only way to try to prevent death, which will occur very quickly, is to use a defibrillator.

A fibrillating heart will not permit adequate circulation even if CPR is performed perfectly, according to the AHA. The only recognized treatment for cardiac arrest is early defibrillation to electrically shock the heart back into a normal rhythm so it can effectively circulate blood. Once the defibrillation pads are applied to the victim’s chest, the AED analyzes the heart rhythm and prompts the rescuer to deliver a shock only when necessary. If either breathing or a heartbeat is present, an AED will not allow the rescuer to shock the victim.

Using electronic voice prompts, the newest generation of AEDs follows three steps. They electronically assess the patient and determine if the reason why no pulse is felt is that the heart has stopped or the rhythm is disorganized. They prepare to release an electric shock that can interrupt the poor rhythm. Finally, they deliver a defibrillating shock only when necessary.

Schedule a private course for a business, organization or a group by July 31st for:
-$25 CPR/AED or First Aid Course
-$45 for both CPR/AED and First Aid

(Minimum of 8 people in a course with no Maximum and participants must be 13 years of age or older)

If you’re considering introducing first aid and CPR training to your workplace, contact us on how to do so.

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