Thanks to a grant from the George A. and Margaret Mee Charitable Foundation, the John Mack Foundation donated eight AEDs to first-responder groups and non-profit organizations in Hancock, New York on Saturday, July 13, 2019. The groups included: the Hancock Fire Department, the Village of Hancock Police Department, St. Paul the Apostle Church, the Hancock Community Education Foundation, Deposit-Hancock Youth Sports, Hancock Youth League, Inc., and Hancock Youth Wrestling. In a show of unity and sportsmanship, the three sports organizations are sharing a single HeartSine AED throughout the year.
Each organization also received American Heart Association Heartsaver CPR/AED certification, good for two years, through the grant. This allowed twenty-one individuals to be trained by Richard Bell, the Director of Operations for the Town of Hancock Volunteer Ambulance Corps. Mr. Bell and several Hancock Fire Department EMTs graciously volunteered their time for the training while the grant covered the CPR/AED e-cards and training books.
Deborah Manley, the Administrator for the Mee Foundation, Margaret Wilson, the EMS Coordinator for Delaware County Emergency Services, and Dr. Richard Berg from Lourdes Primary Care in Hancock, NY all assisted throughout the process.
The John Mack Foundation was founded in 2006 following the death of John Mack, a 17-year old Binghamton High School student. John died after suffering cardiac arrest while playing recreational lacrosse at a facility that did not have an AED (Automated External Defibrillator). An AED is a lightweight, portable device that delivers an electric shock through the chest to the heart. The shock can potentially stop an irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia) and allow a normal rhythm to resume following sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). SCA occurs when the heart malfunctions and stops beating unexpectedly. If not treated within minutes, it quickly leads to death.
The non-profit organizations received a HeartSine PAD 450P AED. This AED is recommended for public access defibrillation programs. It provides easy-to-understand voice prompts and CPR Rate Advisor (push faster, push slower) and reminds the rescuer to perform CPR when no CPR is detected. Pediatric pads were included for organizations that serve children under the age of 8 years and less than 55 pounds.
The first responder organizations received Zoll AEDs since that is what they already use and the Hancock Ambulance uses. This allows capability across the emergency response system (i.e., if the Fire Department EMTs arrives first and applies AED pads to the victim, the Ambulance EMS can just unplug the pads from the AED and plug into their AED without having to re-apply pads); this allows for cost savings with the pads and precious time savings.
The Hancock Fire Department received two Zoll AEDs for their medical first-response program. With the addition of these 2 AEDs, the Hancock Fire Department now has a total of 5 AEDs that are carried in their EMT’s vehicles. These EMTs live in rural areas of their fire district, ensuring that lifesaving medical care can be initiated as soon as possible.
The strong partnership among these Hancock organizations can give Hancock residents and visitors the best care possible during a serious medical event.
Photo Credit: Hancock Fire Department