CPR-READY PH. Some 253 Pasigueños join a successful nationwide cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) awareness campaign at the Pasig City Complex along Caruncho Avenie in Pasig City on Tuesday (July 25, 2023). The Philippine Heart Association is the lead agency of CPR-ReadyPh which gained massive support from its allies, including the Department of Health, Pasig City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office and Philippine Red Cross. (PNA photo by Robert Oswald P. Alfiler)
MANILA – Some 253 residents of Pasig City on Tuesday learned hands-only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to address instances of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).
SCA is the sudden loss of all heart activity due to an irregular heart rhythm where the person becomes unconscious. It can lead to death without an immediate intervention like hands-only CPR and administration of an automated external defibrillator (AED).
The Philippine Heart Association (PHA) and the Pasig City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (CDRMMO) led the training event titled “ZapPinas: AED Sa Pamayanan, Dugtong Buhay Yan!” at the city's sports complex.
PHA president Dr. Ronald Cuyco said it is important that people are CPR-trained.
“Dapat tutukan, pagtuunan ng pansin ang CPR dahil gusto natin ipakalat ito sa buong Pilipinas (We should focus, give our attention to CPR because we want to spread this skill nationwide),” Cuyco said.
The other agencies that supervised the event include the Department of Health (DOH), the Philippine College of Emergency Medicine (PCEM), Philippine Red Cross (PRC) and the American Heart Association (AHA).
DOH Emergency Management Bureau Director Dr. Bernadett Velasco urged the public to take CPR to heart because “it can arise as a personal emergency.”
“Focus talaga ng DOH this year ay AED, at ang Emergency Medical Services ng Pilipinas, and rest assured na mabibigyan ng importansya ito, lalo na at kabilang sa 8-Point Agenda ni Health Secretary Herbosa, pang-apat na dapat handa ang isang komunidad sa oras ng krisis (The DOH's focus this year is the AED, and the Emergency Medical Services of the Philippines, and rest assured that this will be given importance, especially that this part of Secretary Herbosa's 8-Point Agenda, the fourth one stating the community must be ready during crisis),” she said.
The PHA and its partners called for the passage of the National CPR Day every July 17 as a holiday and the AED legislation, which were filed in 2022 and 2016, respectively.
During the event, CPR and AED lectures and live demos for pediatric (infants who are 1.5 years old and below) and adult (13 years old and above) SCA victims were conducted.
The trainees had to pass the Return Demo (hands-only or chest compressions) and the use of an AED with the guidance of CPR/AED trainers from the DOH, PHA, Pasig CDRRMO, PRC and PCEM. (PNA)
