Simple answers to frequent questions

Cardiac arrests are more common than you think, and they can happen to anyone at any time.

• Nearly 383,000 out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrests occur annually, and 88 percent of cardiac arrests occur at home.
• Many victims appear healthy with no known heart disease or other risk factors.
• Sudden cardiac arrest is not the same as a heart attack.
• Sudden cardiac arrest occurs when electrical impulses in the heart become rapid or chaotic, which causes the heart to suddenly stop beating.
• A heart attack occurs when the blood supply to part of the heart muscle is blocked.
• A heart attack may cause cardiac arrest.

We think the answer to that one is easy—EVERYONE should be trained in CPR and AED.

There are some folks, though, who immediately jump to the top of the list, simply because of what they do.

• Healthcare workers—If you have patient contact and work in contexts where CPR and first aid knowledge could be critical, up-to-date training may be required for you, and may include advanced training such as ACLS or PALS.

• Lifeguards—You may be required to add oxygen administration to your emergency care “toolkit” along with CPR and AED.

• Personal Trainers—Many fitness centers and gyms require an AED on site and staff trained in its use.

• Employers with OSHA and other safety requirements—Some or all of your employees may be required to have training beyond CPR and AED, such as bloodborne pathogens and personal protective equipment training. See OSHA’s Best Practices Guide: Fundamentals of a Workplace First Aid Program for more information.

• Childcare Providers—There is not a single state that does not require childcare providers to be CPR certified.

• School Personnel (including teachers, PE teachers, coaches, volunteer coaches, and bus drivers)—More and more states are requiring at least one onsite AED for each school in a district, with a requirement for CPR and AED training for all school personnel as well. It used to be the case that one person trained in CPR would be onsite during the school day, but our regulatory department is seeing a trend towards schools requiring training for all personnel onsite all day and those on site for all afterschool activities (sports or non-sports related).

The life you save with CPR is most likely to be a loved one.

• Four out of five cardiac arrests happen at home.
• Failure to act in a cardiac emergency can lead to unnecessary deaths.
• Effective bystander CPR provided immediately after sudden cardiac arrest can double or triple a victim’s chance of survival.
• Less than eight percent of people who suffer cardiac arrest outside the hospital survive.
• Statistically speaking, the life you save is likely to be someone at home: a child, a spouse, a parent or a friend.

We Provide English and Spanish Training in the Following Communities, Cities and Counties:

Richmond: Henrico, Richmond, Hanover, Chester, Chesterfield, Colonial Heights, Petersburg, Dinwiddie, Nottoway, South Hill, Goochland, Mechanicsville, Midlothian, New Kent, Sandston, Hopewell, Powhatan, Hanover, and Ashland.

Northern Virginia: Alexandria, Fairfax, Loudoun, Arlington, Prince William, Culpeper, Fauquier, Stafford, Falls Church, Manassas, Vienna, McLean, Burke, Dale City, Lorton, Newington, Fredericksburg, Quantico, Reston, Spotsylvania, Springfield, Tysons Corner and Woodbridge.

Norfolk/Virginia Beach: Hampton, Norfolk, Williamsburg, Chesapeake, Gloucester, Hampton, Matthews, Newport News, Portsmouth, Suffolk, York and Virginia Beach.

Charlottesville: Charlottesville, Fluvanna, Louisa, Orange, Albermarle and Nelson.