September 28, 2009
A few questions from crew about the Automated External Defibrillator.
Q. Should we have an AED on our boat?
My answer is always “yes.” According to the American Heart Association, sudden cardiac arrest claims about 340,000 lives each year, about 1,000 every day in the United States.
Sudden cardiac arrest, which is the leading cause of death in the United States, kills more people than breast cancer, lung cancer, and AIDS combined. Currently 95 percent of all cardiac arrest victims die.
Sudden cardiac arrest is caused by a life-threatening abnormal heart rhythm that can result from heart attack, respiratory arrest, drowning, electrocution, choking or trauma. It can have no known cause, and it can happen to anyone.
AEDs save lives. Do you think it’s worth spending $2,000 if it saved the life of a crew member, guest or the owner? Of course it would be. You have smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, security cameras and other safety systems onboard. Why not a piece of equipment that can save a life?
Q. What is an AED and how does it work?
An AED is a portable, battery-operated electronic device about the size of a laptop. It automatically diagnoses the cardiac arrhythmias of ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia and treats the victim with an electrical shock that stops the arrhythmia, allowing the heart to re-establish an effective rhythm.
AEDs are designed only to shock someone in cardiac arrest. If someone were to apply the device to a person who was not in cardiac arrest, it would not shock them.
AEDs are also designed to be simple to use. So simple, in fact, that I often start my classes by selecting someone who has never seen an AED and asking them to demonstrate how to use it by following the AED’s voice instructions.
To date, the youngest person to effectively demonstrate the AED in one of my classes was 9 years old.
Q. How expensive are they?
There are several brands of AEDs available for sale in the United States. They range in price from about $1,225 to about $2,000.
In addition to the AED, you may consider purchasing an AED cabinet or carry case ($100-$300), a rescue ready kit ($40-$55), and training.
Q. What type of training is required to use an AED?
Every minute we delay shocking the victim, their chance of survival drops 10 percent. Training increases speed, confidence and efficiency.
Work with a professional trainer that has real-life experience using CPR and AEDs on real people, someone who can create realistic training scenarios and, most importantly, someone who can make the crew comfortable using their new skills.
Q. Is one AED enough?
It depends. One AED may not always be adequate. Let’s say the owner is onboard along with his family and friends. Half of the group wants to go diving, the other half wants to stay onboard.
So, you load the owner, his kids and several others onto the tender, leaving behind the rest of the party, including the owner’s elderly parents. Which group should have the AED with them?
It is impossible to predict who, when and where sudden cardiac arrest will strike. For this reason, you may need two AEDs. But having at least one AED in your medical kit is a good idea.
The key to a good AED program is placement, training and maintenance. Place the AEDs where they can be easily retrieved in a medical emergency. Train everyone onboard where the AED is located and how to use it. Inspect the AED per the manufacturer’s guidelines, typically once a month, and replace the batteries and electrode pads as indicated.
Keith Murray, a former Florida firefighter EMT, is the owner of The CPR School, a CPR, AED and first-aid training company that provides onboard training for yacht captains and crew. Contact him at +1-561-762-0500 or keith@theCPRschool.com. Comments on this column are welcome at editorial@the-triton.com.
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