OHCA Task Force: Save A Life Mass CPR Training
“We would not have been able to launch Save a Life mass CPR training without their help. I know through this training, in just three years, we are already positively impacting the rates of survival from sudden cardiac arrest in St. Joe County" - Dr. William Sarnat
In 2015, the survival rate from out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in St. Joseph County was only 5% compared to a 10% national average. Believing a lack of community awareness and low bystander intervention were key contributors, Dr. William Sarnat, a retired cardiologist, approached enFocus. In 2017, enFocus launched Save a Life, an annual day-long mass CPR training for 8th graders. To date more than 3,900 eighth graders have learned the life-saving skill. After participating in the training event, students use their Mini Anne® manikin take-home kits to teach cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to family and friends. Research with trained students reports not only an increase in student confidence and competence in administering CPR, but also an increased willingness to intervene and initiate CPR in an emergent situation.
The effects of this training are anticipated to increase bystander intervention and correlate with increases in patient survival. In the three years since Save a Life training has been implemented, the survival rate of victims of sudden cardiac arrest in St. Joseph County has risen from 5.9% to 11%.