Can’t You Hear My Heartbeat?

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a process that involves activating the emergency response system, by first ascertaining if a person requires assistance, summoning trained responders, and providing interim care until they arrive. That care will often include giving chest compressions to someone whose heart has stopped beating. If the heart stops, blood, which carries oxygen and nutrients to our organs, cannot circulate, and the body dies. That’s what happened to my neighbors’ son-in-law over the New Year. Mike and Phyllis (not their real names) live with their three young sons in a rural area south of Boston. Mike, a 44-year old professional who is athletic, and a runner in good physical condition, came home and collapsed. Phyllis immediately dispatched their children to call emergency services (911) and to alert the nearest neighbor. She then began chest compressions, continuing until she was relieved by trained responders. Make that other trained responders, because Mike’s doctors credit Phyllis’s actions as having saved Mike’s life. Mike has been since discharged to Home, after having a stent placed in a coronary artery. We hope his recovery and cardiac rehabilitation are swift and complete, and that Mike and his family enjoy many decades of good health and happiness.

Mike is very lucky. His wife was right there to help him. When it was needed, her CPR training kicked in, and she went on auto-pilot. That wasn’t easy. Treating a loved one is always tough. And in all the years Phyllis has been training and recertifying her training, CPR has changed many times. The rate of compressions given has changed. The rhythm of the compressions has changed. The number of breaths given has changed, as has the number of breathing intervals. What has not changed is the concept of providing circulation and respirations to a victim who cannot do it for himself. Kudos to Phyllis for doing everything right, for saving her husband, and keeping her family intact.

This story makes Phyllis sound like a hero, and she surely is. She learned CPR, and was able to make use of her training when it was needed. By the way, Phyllis is not a physician. She is not a nurse. She is not a trained and experienced health professional. Phyllis works in an administrative position at a local college.

I don’t know if Phyllis’s employer requires their employees to be certified in CPR. Some employers do, and some don’t. Every employer my wife has had has required their professional staff to successfully complete a CPR course, and recertify when appropriate. That is to be expected. She is a registered nurse, and actually had to perform CPR on an elderly patient several years ago, at the patient’s home, until first responders arrived.

I applaud any company that requires their employees to learn CPR. My last employer required all store-based pharmacists to be certified in CPR, and to recertify at regular intervals. That training, provided by and paid for by the company, included adult and child CPR, and use of an automatic external defibrillator (AED), a device used to shock the heart, if needed, to restore its normal electrical rhythm. While that training is useful, the stores, which each serve some 2,000+ customers every day, do not have AED’s available for use. At the time of my last recertification, only pharmacists were required to undergo CPR training. But they were there for only ten hours (or less) each day. What did they do if an emergency occurred during the "off" pharmacy hours? I think a CPR requirement should extend to all management personnel as well, not just in pharmacies, or in stores with a pharmacy department, but in all large retail outlets. I won’t define “large” here.

Retail pharmacists are one relatively small group of people who should be trained and certified to perform CPR. All licensed health care professionals should be so trained and required to demonstrate their proficiency, at regular intervals. It should be a condition of licensure. Who defines what constitutes a health care profession? That's to be left to the wisdom of the regulators and legislators, but this author/pharmacist would support the requirement of CPR certification for anyone who is licensed in any profession or trade. Imagine a world where you're assured that your hairdresser, dog officer, obstetrician, plumber, pharmacist....all are certified to perform CPR! It does my heart good.

This article is reprinted by permission from ThePassionatePharmacist healthcare blog. For more healthcare articles, visit www.thePassionatePharmacist.net. For more information on CPR, contact the American Red Cross or the American Heart Association.