Why Learning CPR is More Important Than You Think

Why Learning CPR is More Important Than You Think

Each year, hundreds of thousands of adults and children experience cardiac emergencies. The difference between life and death often depends on whether someone nearby is willing and able to respond.

The realities of sudden cardiac arrest

Cardiac arrest is among the leading causes of death in the United States and worldwide. The most dramatic occurrence — sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) — can happen with little to no warning for individuals of all ages.

More than 436,000 people die from cardiac arrests each year in the United States alone. Alarmingly, nearly 91% of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests are fatal.

A person’s chance of survival decreases by 10% for every minute that passes without CPR and defibrillation. This means bystanders are the key to increasing survival rates for sudden cardiac arrest and other cardiac emergencies.

Bystander CPR: The power of immediate action

Effective CPR and early defibrillation with an AED can more than double a victim’s chance of survival. This is why healthcare and emergency care organizations across the world unite to bring awareness about the importance of CPR and AED training. The more trained bystanders, the more lives can be saved.

Bystander CPR helps to restore limited oxygen to the brain and other vital organs by maintaining blood flow through a combination of chest compressions and rescue breaths. But in cases of SCA, CPR alone isn’t enough. An electric shock from an AED is needed to restore the heart’s normal contractions.

Immediate CPR along with early AED use significantly improves the likelihood of long-term survival and recovery.

Why you should learn CPR

Learning CPR is not just an important skill. It's a critical component of community health and safety. Here are some of the benefits of CPR training:

• Learn lifesaving skills. Comprehensive CPR, AED, and First Aid training includes adult, child, and infant CPR and AED use. But it also covers a wide variety of medical emergencies and safety topics, from responding to a stroke or heart attack to choking and burns.
• Increase confidence. CPR training enables you to act confidently during a medical emergency, potentially saving the life of a family member, friend, or stranger. It gives you the opportunity to practice real-life scenarios — including chest compressions, rescue breaths, and AED use — while receiving constructive feedback to improve your abilities.
• Improve survival rates. Every minute counts during a cardiac emergency. The longer a person goes without CPR, the lower their chances of survival. Combining high-quality CPR with early defibrillation can significantly increase survival rates and long-term recovery efforts.
• Boost community safety. Widespread CPR knowledge creates a safer environment for everyone, as more individuals are prepared to respond during cardiac emergencies. From schools and workplaces to public places and private residences, the more people with CPR training, the stronger and safer our communities become.

Countless lives are lost each year to cardiac arrest. But we have the power to change that. By learning CPR and AED skills, you can be ready to make a lifesaving difference when every second counts.