Kudos to the Chicago Department of Public Health

In a previous post I suggested that the City of Chicago could do more on public health policies. Well, here's something to celebrate! Kudos CDPH! A statement from our Chicago Metro Board President follows:

We commend Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) Commissioner Terry Mason, M.D., for recently spearheading a bold initiative to save lives. Dr. Mason led a training where over 1,000 CDPH workers learned CPR. The training utilized the American Heart Association’s Family and Friends CPR Anytime™, a cutting-edge 22-minute training program that provides an instructional video and an inflatable mannequin.

This mass training sets a healthy example not only for other officials across the country, it also makes Chicago a safer and healthier city. Because almost 80 percent of cardiac arrests occur at home and are witnessed by a family member, teaching CPR is extremely important. CPR can double a loved one’s chance of survival by maintaining vital blood flow to the heart and brain until more advanced care can be given. Approximately 166,000 out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest deaths occur annually in the United States. This number could be reduced dramatically if more people knew CPR and acted while waiting for 911 to respond.

Recently, the American Heart Association published a statement about the use of Hands-Only CPR, which is a potentially lifesaving option to be used by people not trained in conventional CPR or those who are unable to give the combination of chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth breathing. Whether it's giving chest compressions only or giving a combination of compressions and breaths, doing something is always better than doing nothing!
Encouraging use of CPR and AEDs has been a personal passion of mine for many years. As a cardiologist, I have seen first-hand the impact these life-saving developments have made on heart attack survival rates. We are grateful that Commissioner Mason has made learning CPR a priority in Chicago. Officials elsewhere should do the same.

Andrew Rauh, M.D.

President, Metro Chicago Board of Directors
American Heart Association
Interventional Cardiologist, Midwest Heart Specialists