TCC secures defibrillators to save attack victims
Personnel in key locations on campuses train with AEDs
by Diana De Leon, feature editor

    Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), new devices that can save lives, are now available district-wide for use in medical emergencies.

   An AED is used to administer an electric shock through the chest wall to the heart.

   Until recently, only trained medical professionals were able to assess the heart rhythms with a manual defibrillator.

   The AED program has placed these life-saving devices in locations on each campus in three strategic locations: the health center, the police primary patrol unit and the HPE building.

   “These locations make sense,” Flo Stanton, South Campus coordinator of health services, said.

   Devices are also in the May Owen Center and the Fort Worth Opportunity Center, with plans to include an AED at other satellite facilities still in the works.

   Initially, a handful of police, nurses and other staff received training in the use of the new AEDs, and many of these professionals are now certified to train others.

   “There are people interested,” Stanton said. “I like having an active part in the program.”

   Stanton is currently putting together a class and will train interested instructors and staff on the South Campus soon.

   Police officers from each campus attended classes to become certified instructors, returned to their respective campuses and trained co-workers.

   District-wide, all but three officers have been trained in the use of the AEDs. The three officers not trained are on vacation or military duty. They will receive training on their return.

   More training and placements are expected in the future.

   “It’s wonderful how each campus helps each other,” Sgt. Toni Owens, a seven-year veteran on the NW Campus, said.

   Those who trained to become certified instructors went through a two-day course while others trained in AED use went through an eight-hour course.

   “It is recommended that we take a refresher course every other year, but we hope to do it every year,” Owens said.

   The first out-of-hospital defibrillation device weighed 110 pounds.

   According to the American Heart Association (AHA), the devices now weigh less than 10 pounds.

   The AEDs use computer chips to analyze heart rhythms instantly, making it possible for non-medical personnel to administer the shock following a voice prompt.

   The AHA says sudden cardiac death occurs over 680 times per day in the United States alone.

   While some heart attacks are sudden and intense, most start slowly with mild pain or discomfort.

   Although symptoms may vary among those experiencing heart attacks, chest discomfort is the most common sign of a heart attack.

   A feeling of pressure, squeezing and pain accompanied by shortness of breath are associated with chest discomfort.

   Symptoms can include pain in one or both arms, back, neck, jaw and stomach. Some people experience nausea, lightheadedness and a cold sweat.

   If a heart attack becomes full cardiac arrest, the heart goes into an uncoordinated electrical activity called fibrillation.

   “It’s like the heart is quivering,” Stanton said.

   The AED analyzes the heart rhythm through adhesive electrodes and, if needed, delivers an electric current through the electrode pads.

   “District-wide we have 31,000 students,” she said. “That’s a city.”

   Survival rates increased from 7 percent to 26 percent when AEDs were available to first responders, the AHA said.

   With the new equipment and training, TCC now has its own first response team that includes nurses, police and instructors. The district is now prepared for such emergencies.