National CPR & AED Awareness Week

Celebrate National CPR & AED Awareness Week – Make Your Training Count!

June 1-7 is National CPR & AED Awareness Week, and to celebrate, the American Heart Association has set a goal to train 1 million people in June. In December of 2007, Congress declared the first week in June of each year as National CPR/AED Awareness Week with the goal of encouraging states, cities and towns to establish organized programs that provide CPR and AED trainings and increase public access to AEDs.

Each year, about 310,000 coronary heart disease deaths occur out-of-hospital or in emergency departments in the United States. Of those deaths, about 166,200 are due to sudden cardiac arrest – nearly 450 per day.

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.

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.

Learning CPR and how to use an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) can quite possibly mean the difference between life and death for someone suffering from Sudden Cardiac Arrest. If ordinary people act immediately with Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and use an Automated External Defibrillator (AED), instead of just waiting for help to arrive, many thousands of lives can be saved every year.


FirstAidWeb is unique online self-guiding CPR course and First Aid course.


Check it out in your free time to become more proficient in CPR.


Contact the American Heart Association or American Red Cross for times and locations for CPR & AED classes.








(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)