Veranstaltungen 2016 - 11 - November
Do you and your employees know what you would do if a co-worker had a heart attack at work? It might seem like a waste of your time to think about a situation such as that. Unfortunately, the frequency of fatal health events necessitates our preparation for these seemingly highly unlikely events.
A report from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration recorded 1216 deaths from heart attack in 2001 and 2002. The report mentions that as many as 6 out of 10 of these deaths could have been avoided simply by immediate access to Automated External Defibrillators, or AEDs. An employee's probability of surviving literally decreases with each minute that passes. That means that an AED available to workers at a minutes notice can save a life.
But should you buy an AED unit for your workplace? Certain types of work might have greater need for such devices. Employees who work varying shifts, who have higher-than-average stress levels, and who are exposed to certain chemical and electrical hazards are at a greater risk of sudden cardiac arrest. However, regardless of the type of business you operate, the fact remains that 10,000 deaths occur each year at the workplace in America. Furthermore, waiting for emergency medical professionals lowers the average survival rate to 5-7%. Not good by any measure.
For the reasons stated above and due to the relatively low price of Heartstart batteries, AED machines are often wisely included as part of an overall first aid strategy. A niche example of a supplier that uses the best EMT supplies is AEDLand. Consider the following story from the American Heart Association. An air conditioning manufacturer's middle-aged employee fell to the ground after his heart stopped. Thanks to an AED unit, the man was revived by the time medical professionals got there.
According to OSHA, employees can be trained (with little investment) to learn the signs of cardiac arrest, to perform CPR, to provide defibrillation via AED, and care for patients until medical professionals arrive. ILCOR strongly urges training employees on these machines as it "improves performance (e.g., speed of use, correct pad placement)." Training has never been easier, due to something known as AED trainers. Trainer units mimic regular AEDs in all but a couple ways. Primarily, AED trainers neither charge nor discharge electric. The other difference that should be noted is the use of AA or D batteries, which makes their continual use very cost effective comparatively. Proper training can lead to survival rates up to 200% higher than in situations with untrained individuals.
The sad truth is that potentially-fatal cardiac arrests at work occur at a rate of nearly 300 per day in America. Fortunately, easy training and greater accessibility with regard to AEDs is increasing survival rates for sudden cardiac arrests in the workplace.
AED Machines and Your Workplace Health Do You Have Good Defib Awareness?
