Wake County embarks on 100-day life-saving campaign

Raleigh, N.C. — Wake County's Emergency Medical Services and Board of Commissioners kicked off a three-month campaign Monday that's aimed at getting automated external defibrillators in more public buildings.

The goal of the Wake EMS 100 Day Heart Safe Automated External Defibrillators Campaign is to help more people survive cardiac arrest.

"Today’s announcement is a crucial step in improving cardiac arrest survival rates," Wake County Chairman Paul Coble said. "We encourage the business community to take advantage of this life-saving campaign."

The county has partnered with local AED vendors to offer incentives for businesses and groups buying the devices.

Once a device is registered, the information is provided to the Wake County 911 centers so that dispatchers can quickly locate the unit and assist with its use during emergencies.

One of the speakers at Monday's event was Rep. Becky Carney, D-Mecklenburg, who survived a heart attack at her legislative office in Raleigh in April 2009. Another lawmaker, who is also a doctor, used a defibrillator at the building to restart her heart.

According to the American Heart Association, sudden cardiac arrest is one of the leading causes of death in the United States and strikes more than 350,000 people a year. Automatic defibrillators, along with CPR, provide an immediate and essential link that may be the difference between life and death.

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Latest Comments

They have made AEDs so easy to use that anyone could save a life if one of these is around. It is ALWAYS better to have CPR training, but an AED is much better than simply waiting for EMS to arrive. I hope businesses take advantage of this. I know our church installed 3 (though I think we need more).

edith wharton
May 15, 2012 9:03 a.m.

This effort will help save lives. Training is great-a little expensive(about $50 per person), but that is a small price to pay for saving a life.

I used to sell AEDs. When a call came from a customer who had saved a life, I broke down in tears. What an experience.

Every public building, church, school, and decent sized business should have an AED and trained personnel.

cwood3
May 14, 2012 2:55 p.m.

Would like to know what kind of incentives the vendors are offering considering it costs around $1,500 each. It mentioned in the article that the AED working with CPR saves life. So, how many business encourage its employees to be certified in CPR & First Aid. We are all CPR & First Aid certified here.