Vogel continues to promote SaveStations, quick response times

by Cori Hilsgen

news@thenewsleaders.com

Joel Vogel of St. Joseph spoke at the Aug. 14 St. Joseph Y2K Lions meeting about outdoor automatic external defibrillator SaveStations in the area and the quick response time needed with sudden-cardiac-arrest and heart-attack victims.

AEDs are portable machines that are used to deliver electrical shocks through the chest to the heart to people who have had a sudden cardiac arrest. A sudden cardiac arrest is an electrical condition of the heart that causes the heart to suddenly stop beating and results in loss of blood flow to the brain and body. Sudden cardiac arrests can be reversed if cardiopulmonary resuscitation is started and the heart is shocked or “defibrillated” quickly. The electrical shock can stop an irregular heart beat and reset a normal rhythm.

A heart attack, or myocardial infarction, occurs when coronary arteries are blocked, resulting in decreased blood flow to the heart. When this happens, heart muscles die or are permanently damaged because of the loss of blood flow. A heart attack can lead to sudden cardiac arrest.

Vogel said a victim’s chance of surviving after a sudden cardiac arrest drops by about 10 percent for every minute a normal heartbeat isn’t restored. The average emergency response time is about eight minutes. Sudden cardiac arrests kill 1,000 people each day or one person every two minutes.

With a quick response of cardiopulmonary resuscitation and/or an AED, many patients can be saved and that is why Vogel continues to try to increase public awareness.

Vogel is a SaveStation specialist with Advocates For Health. The nonprofit was started by Rich Feneis, who is also a specialist.

He and Feneis have received many donations and assistance from people in the area. Some of them include the following.

Molly Young, a senior at the College of St. Benedict, who is completing visits to all of the 481 AEDs located in Central Minnesota and is helping inventory the AED location in buildings, the model of AED and checking to ensure all the batteries and pads are up-to-date and in working condition.

GeoComm, which specializes in geographic information system technologies, has taken all the 481 AED’s addresses and mapped them out for 911 dispatch in the area. Vogel said the plan is for implementation by the end of August with Stearns County.

They will also be sharing the information with the existing national phone applications such as “AED Finder” and “PulsePoint” to update their data for the area.

St. Joseph City Administrator Kris Ambuehl said they will soon be developing an AED location map to put on the city website.

At the Y2K Lions meeting, Vogel asked 10-year-old Anya Gronseth to use an AED and do cardiopulmonary resuscitation to show how easy it is for a person to do. Gronseth was attending the meeting with her grandmother, Lori Steinemann of Sauk Rapids.

When using an AED, a built-in computer checks a victim’s heart rhythm through adhesive electrodes and then calculates if defibrillation is needed. If it is needed, a recorded voice prompts the rescuer to press the shock button on the AED and guides the user through the process. AEDs advise a shock for ventricular fibrillation or another life-threatening condition called pulseless ventricular tachycardia.

Recent donations have helped install five outdoor AED SafeStations in the St. Joseph area.

Unfortunately, many AEDs are located in locked buildings and are not always easily accessible. Vogel and Feneis continue to work to get AEDs out where people can use them 24/7 such as in SaveStations.

Outdoor SaveStations monitor and report rescue status, the presence of the AED and surrounding conditions. They offer real-time information about the use of the AED and ensure the internal temperature of the storage cabinet keeps the effective operating range of an AED.

AEDs range in price from $2,795 (standard), $3,995 (wall mount) and $4,695 (tower) plus additional costs for the AED installation, electrical hookup, sales tax (if applicable) and shipping costs.

A joint initiative between Sheriff Steve Soyka and the Stearns County Sheriff’s Department, local police agencies, local civic organizations, Stearns County Health and Safety Foundation, the CentraCare Foundation, the Greater St. Cloud Safety Foundation, Advocates for Health and Mended Hearts has set a goal of the following:

• Inventory and update existing AEDs in Central Minnesota.

• Replace outdated batteries and pads.

• Strongly encourage installation of existing AEDs in a SaveStation cabinet available to the public 24/7, 365 days per year.

• Create awareness of locations of AEDs.

• Educate the public on the use and importance of AEDs.

Vogel, a member of the Mended Hearts organization, suffered a heart attack on Mother’s Day 2004 and has been advocating for about eight years to help increase awareness of necessary quick response time needed.

To contact Vogel for additional information email him at Joel@AdvocatesForHealth.net or call him at 855-728-7828.