CPR Marathon Marks American Heart Month
ER Doctors, Nurses, CPR Instructors, Volunteer Firefighters and Girl Scouts Perform Non-Stop CPR from “9 to5” to Demonstrate “Hands Only” CPR

Roslyn, New York – In an effort to help educate the public about the new American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines for “hands only” CPR, St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center® held an all-day CPR marathon to emphasize the importance of learning this life-saving technique.

The rapid delivery of CPR can greatly increase the chances of surviving a sudden cardiac arrest. The latest guidelines are not only aimed at making it simpler for lay people to learn the technique, but also eliminate concerns of transmitting communicable diseases by not requiring mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

“With the advent of new training regimens, every day people can really make a difference in the outcomes of heart attack victims who lapse into cardiac arrest,” says Alan D. Guerci, M.D., President and CEO. “With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, we cannot think of a better gift than giving the gift of life,”

“Our instructors conduct regular classes for parents, grandparents, babysitters and students to help prepare them for emergencies,” says Clare Guydish, Cardiac Emergency Program Coordinator. “You don’t have to be a healthcare provider to be a lifesaver.”

CPR instructors were available throughout the day to demonstrate the technique and to discuss CPR certification. They were assisted by groups of physicians, nurses and volunteers whose compressions could amount to the equivalent of more than five thousand push ups by the end of the day.

The Code Red Team from the Hospital’s ER launched the marathon, followed by volunteer firefighters, teams of nurses, students and Girl Scouts, in an effort to spread the word about the life-saving benefits of learning this technique.

Contact:
Paul Barry, 516-705-6657, paul.barry@chsli.org
Rosemary Gomez, 516-705-6656, rosemary.gomez@chsli.org