Ambulance personnel train hundreds in CPR

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation — or CPR — can and has saved lives because those first on the scene have the proper training.

Here in Jamestown, Ringdahl, EMS, Jamestown Ambulance, offers that training plus first-aid training to at least 300 people per year, according to Nancy Miller, business manager.

“Those first few minutes are what counts when somebody has a heart attack,” Miller said, adding that the survival rate is much greater if recourse is taken in the first 2 to 3 minutes.

Jamestown Ambulance trains the public along with lay people, day care providers, health clinic workers and others.

One class is offered about once a month. Some classes include Heart Saver, first-aid training, CPR and health care provider CPR.

“We want the community to be prepared,” Miller said. “The more they know the more it helps us.”

Each class is typically about four hours long and runs anywhere from $60 to $75. Once completed the person who passes will be certified for two years.

It may be a good time to take a class if not certified as CPR has undergone some changes, Miller said.

“Some people are just not comfortable breathing for somebody else,” she said. “So by doing the compressions they can keep the blood already in the body circulating.”

The new rate of chest compressions comes from a song made famous in the Disco era by the Bee Gees.

“You need to be able to do compressions at a rate of 100 a minute, and if you are doing compressions to the rate of “Staying Alive,” it’s the exact rate you have to be doing,” Miller said.

Last month Major League Baseball umpire Jim Joyce saved a woman’s life in Arizona before umpiring a baseball game by doing compressions at that rate.

“A lot of times we just point out to them, if this was your family member would you know what to do?” Miller said about providing help in life threatening situations.

CPR classes offered differ. For example, a general CPR class is not going to be as in depth as a health care provider CPR class. Those are for people who work in assisted-living facilities, medical clinics or in-home health care providers.

While CPR is a life-saving tool, first aid is more of an initial care tool until more expert medical health can be delivered.

There are first-aid methods for everything from animal bites to tooth loss.

Some of the main tools taught here in Jamestown are how to control breathing, some minor splinting and what to do if somebody has collapsed, Miller said.

In order to perform first aid, a first-aid kit might be needed.

According to WebMD.com, home kits typical cover injuries for burns, cuts, scrapes, strings, splinters, sprains or strains.

Travel kits have to be more comprehensive because there may not be a drug store nearby. According to WebMD.com, in addition to the home kit, travel kits should include supplies for fever, nasal congestion, cough, sore throat, skin allergies or problems, mild pain or gastrointestinal problems.

For more information or to sign up for a class, call Jamestown Ambulance at 251-2273.

Sun reporter Ben Rodgers can be reached at 701-952-8455

or by email at brodgers@jamestownsun.com

Tags: life, emergency, safety