Assemblymember Freddie Rodriguez and American Medical Response hosted a free CPR certification course for local residents on Saturday, March 14th. Thirty members of the community received training in adult and infant CPR and the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED) at the Montclair Youth Center.
“As a life-long EMT, I know how important it is for everyone to know CPR,” said Rodriguez. “When a cardiac emergency strikes, receiving timely CPR can mean the difference between life and death. Having more qualified lifesavers in the community could help save the life of someone that you love.”
According to the American Heart Association, only ten percent of people who suffer cardiac arrest outside of a hospital survive. Effective bystander CPR provided immediately after sudden cardiac arrest can double or triple a victim’s chance of survival, yet only 32 percent of victims get CPR from a bystander.
“This is the third training event I have held so far and I am looking at holding more events throughout the year,” said Rodriguez.
Rodriguez has also introduced Assembly Bill 319 to require students to make learning CPR a high school graduation requirement. Students would be taught compression-only CPR, which is CPR without mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
“Teaching CPR as part of a high school class such as Health or PE will put more lifesavers in our community year after year,” said Rodriguez. “Our communities are safer when we equip our students with lifesaving skills and prepare to act during an emergency.”
Assemblymember Rodriguez gives tips to a participant as he practices CPR on the instructional mannequin.
Assemblymember Rodriguez with Emergency Medical Technicians from American Medical Response who helped provide training.