Submitted by SCAFoundation on Tue, 04/20/2010 - 10:01am

Harrisburg, PA --- On Wednesday, April 21, 2010 a group of parents who lost children to sudden cardiac arrest and subject matter experts will testify before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Education Committee. The purpose of their testimony is to endorse House Bill 1803, introduced by Representative John Siptroth (D). The bill would amend the public school code to provide and expand Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) placement and training in schools and create a Cardiovascular Screening Pilot Program.

Hundreds of children die every year from sudden cardiac arrest, many of them at school or at school sponsored sporting events. Most of these children have no symptoms prior to the onset of sudden cardiac arrest. To protect against such tragedies, House Bill 1803 advocates for CPR and AED instruction, the development of a sudden cardiac arrest response plan, and AEDs in schools and athletic fields. AEDs are small, safe devices the size of laptop computers. Easy to operate, they have proven extremely effective in resuscitating victims of sudden cardiac arrest if administered immediately after the heart stops. They will not shock anyone whose heart is beating normally and who is not in cardiac arrest.

“These machines save lives. At Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), we work with the families of victims of cardiac arrest and see the terrible cost of cardiac arrest, both to families and communities. Making schools safer for our children, their teachers, and visiting family and community members is an appropriate way for us to contribute,” said Victoria Vetter, M.D., Medical Director of Youth Heart Watch and cardiologist at CHOP.

Each year, approximately 300,000 people die from sudden cardiac arrest in the United States. It is estimated that, of this number, at least 1,000 are children and young athletes. In most cases, neither these children nor their parents, have any idea they are susceptible to this life-threatening disorder. In addition to cardiac conditions, in some cases, a sharp blow to the chest can send a person into cardiac arrest.
While first responders to emergencies, such as EMS ambulances, frequently have AEDs, the key to successful resuscitation is immediacy. Application within three to five minutes of the heart stopping is required. With every passing minute after the arrest that an AED is not used, the odds of successful resuscitation decrease about ten percent. The average EMS response rate in most areas of the state is  9-10 minutes. 

Passage of H.B. 1803 will not only make schools in Pennsylvania safer for students, it will make schoos safer for everyone in the school community--including teachers, coaches, administrators, parents and grandparents," said Bobby V. Khan, MD, PhD, Chairman of the SCA Foundation Board of Directors, and Mary Newman, President, in written testimony to the Education Committee. "It really shouldn't be a matter of debate," they said. "It's simply a matter of common sense and doing the right thing."

Pennsylvania was a national leader when it passed legislation in 2001 providing two AEDs to every school district in the Commonwealth, one to every intermediate unit and one to every vocational technical school. Many school districts used this impetus to place AEDs in every school within the district. House Bill 1803 would require defibrillators in every occupied school building in Pennsylvania. Thirteen other states have passed similar legislation, beginning with New York State in 2002.

Testimony in Harrisburg will begin at 9 a.m.  – Irvis Office Building –Room G-50 .