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U.P.: The device that helps save cardiac arrest victims in Lucknow govt offices, malls soon
The government offices and malls in Lucknow will soon have automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to help save victims of cardiac arrest before an ambulance arrives. The AED devices will be stored in a central location and will be easily accessible to all staff. AEDs are capable of giving an electrical shock to the heart to restore its normal rhythm. The survival rates are reported to be as high as 49% in AED programs, and up to 90% when defibrillation is achieved within the first minute of collapse.
In case anyone suffers a cardiac arrest at a government office or at a mall in the state capital, a small handy device will soon help save the victim even before an ambulance arrives.
In a first in Lucknow, an AED, or automated external defibrillator, helpful in case of a cardiac arrest will now be available at major government offices across the state capital, said a press statement from the state government on Saturday. Malls will also have the device mandatorily.
From August 1, Lok Bhavan, Indira Bhavan, Shakti Bhavan and Jawahar Bhavan will shall start getting the AED device. The Secretariat, other government offices and malls will also get this device that can be stored easily. It will be kept at a central location known and within reach of all staff posted in an office.
In case of a cardiac arrest, the heart instead of a rhythmic beat pattern starts fibrillation, which is muscular twitching or muscle lose coordination. AED helps bring back the normal beat via shock.
“It is a welcome step. AED is a sophisticated, easy-to-use, medical device capable of giving an electrical shock, also called defibrillation, to make the heart re-establish its rhythm, in case of a cardiac arrest,” said Prof Haider Abbas, HoD emergency medicine, King George’s Medical University.
“In other countries, it is called public access defibrillation (PAD). It has the potential to be the single greatest advance in the treatment of VF (Ventricular Fibrillation),” he added.
“Extraordinary survival rates—as high as 49%—have been reported in PAD programs. Survival rate as high as 90% has been reported when defibrillation is achieved within the first minute of collapse,” Prof Abbas said.
It is already mandatory for big hotels keep the device. “We have the AED equipment for the last several years and it is kept at designated place that all staff know about. Our key staff members are trained to use the equipment in case of an emergency,” said the general manager of a hotel in Gomti Nagar. A senior official of another hotel said his hotel had the device and staff was trained in using it.
“All doctors from the medical facilities within the Secretariat (allopathic, homeopathic and ayurvedic) and administrators of all buildings have been trained in the operation and use of the machine,” said the press statement from the state government.
“We will be the first to go for AED as we get the directions. Saving life is priority for all of us and we shall give full cooperation and get our staff trained,” said Yogendra Arya, GM, Crown mall.
Explaining what the AED does to the heart when cardiac arrest happens, Dr Abhishek Shukla, secretary-general, Association of International Doctors said, “In easy steps, an AED help give initial support to the patient. It gives voice commands to the person handling the machine and, in a few steps, an electric shock, if required.”
“AED assesses whether the shock is required or not based upon the rhythm of the heart it reads with the help of pads patched up on skin near heart. Where to place the pads is mentioned on the machine and depicted in a picture too,” Dr Shukla added.
