TIP OF THE WEEK

June 6, 2008

Did you know...?

First National CPR & AED Awareness Week

The American Heart Association, the American Red Cross and the National Safety Council collaborated to have June 1-7 designated as National CPR & Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Awareness Week.

National CPR & AED Awareness Week is geared towards encouraging the public to learn lifesaving skills like CPR and how to use an AED, as well as increase awareness of the need for public access to AEDs.

Heroes aren't born. They're trained.

Each year an estimated 166,000 lives are claimed by Sudden Cardiac Arrest, an electronic malfunction that causes rapid and chaotic heart activity. In fact, more people die from sudden cardiac arrest than from breast cancer, prostate cancer, AIDS, house fires, handguns and traffic accidents combined. Sudden cardiac arrest can happen to anyone at any time. 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.

CPR and early defibrillation with an AED are critical. However, less than one-third of adult sudden cardiac arrest victims receive bystander CPR. Effective bystander CPR, provided immediately after a sudden cardiac arrest, can double or even triple a victim’s chance of survival.

American Heart Association training centers train 10 million people in CPR annually, but we must do more. For victims of a sudden cardiac arrest, a bystander who performs immediate CPR and defibrillation with an AED could make a life or death difference.

Only about 6 percent of out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest victims survive.
Less than 1/3 of cardiac arrest victims receive CPR.
Effective CPR can DOUBLE or TRIPLE survival rates.
The most effective rate for chest compressions is 100 compressions per minute – the same rhythm as the beat of the Bee Gee's song, “Stayin’ Alive.”

Unless CPR and defibrillation are provided within minutes of collapse, few attempts at resuscitation are successful.
Even if CPR is performed, defibrillation with an AED is required to stop the abnormal rhythm and restore a normal heart rhythm.

New technology has made AEDs simple and user-friendly. Clear audio and visual cues tell users what to do when using an AED and coach people through CPR. A shock is delivered only if the victim needs it.
AEDs are now widely available in public places such as schools, airports and workplaces.

According to the AHA CPR/AED Awareness Survey:

Eighty-nine percent of respondents said they were willing and able to do something to help if they witnessed a medical emergency.
Few Americans (12%-20%) are confident that they would know when it is appropriate to perform CPR or use an AED.
At most, roughly four in ten are extremely or very likely to perform CPR on an adult (39%) or child (37%) they know personally.
Less than 17 percent of Americans believe they are at risk for sudden cardiac arrest.
The survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of the American Heart Association between January 8, 2008 and January 21, 2008 among 1,132 U.S. residents aged 18 and older.

To view the AHA Survey, visit the American Heart Association website at: www.americanheart.org.

Take the opportunity to learn CPR and how to use an AED. You could be a lifesaver!

OHS-COMPCARE offers CPR & AED training classes. To learn more contact Client Services at 816-561-2105 (option 1) or by email at customerservice@ohscompcare.com.

***FYI - The Joint Committee on Legislative Research will hold a public hearing to continue working on the impending insolvency of the Second Injury Fund at Tan-Tar-A Resort at the Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri on June 9th, 2008.

*Please feel free to forward this information to any member of management in your company who would benefit from it.*

We now offer the Tip of the Week in Spanish. To view the Tip of the Week in Spanish please visit our Tip of the Week library at http://www.ohscompcare.com/totw/. Please allow a few days for the current Tip of the Week to be translated and placed in to the library.

To learn more about services OHS-COMPCARE has to offer, contact our Client Services Team at (816) 561-2105 option 1 or by e-mail at customerservice@ohscompcare.com. You can also visit us at www.ohscompcare.com.

Why choose us? Because OHS-COMPCARE employs highly qualified staff and invests in initial, annual and ongoing refresher training to provide superior care to your employee.

OHS-COMPCARE has eight (8) area clinical facilities:

Blue Springs Clinical Facility	Independence Clinical Facility	Johnson County Clinical Facility	St. Joseph Clinical Facility
801 NW St. Mary’s Drive	19000 E. Eastland Center Crt, St. 200	10415 Lackman Road	904 Edmond Street
Blue Springs, MO 64104	Independence, MO 64055	Lenexa, KS 66219	St. Joseph, MO 64501
816-224-9121	816-478-9299	913-495-9905	816-233-7702
	After Hours Available

KCMO/Broadway Clinical Facility	KCMO/Front Street Clinical Facility	Wyandotte County Clinical Facility	Grandview Clinical Facility
1650 Broadway	6501 East Commerce, Suite 110	1333 Meadowlark Lane, Suite 200	13830 S Us Highway 71
Kansas City, MO 64108	Kansas City, MO 64120	Kansas City, KS 66102	Grandview, MO 64030
816-842-2020	816-483-5550	913-596-2774	816-761-4664