April 17, 2008–In a first for local schools, the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board will soon place in its high school athletic departments a dozen automated external defibrillators donated by area medical groups
The first of the devices will be donated to the School Board today in the memory of Glen Oaks High School student-athlete Shannon Veal, who died Feb. 18 after collapsing during a basketball game. The first automated external defibrillator, or AED, will go to Glen Oaks High.
After learning about Veal’s tragic death — believed to be caused by a heart condition, David Carmouche, MD, persuaded eight area medical groups to donate about $20,000 together to buy the 12 devices with the help of the Kiwanis civic organization.
Carmouche said while there is no way to know for certain if an AED available at courtside would have saved Veal, he said he believes all schools should have the devices to ensure a quick response in cases of cardiac arrest.
“Communities that have these (devices) widely disbursed have much greater success rates for resuscitating people out of the hospital,” said Carmouche, who practices at Baton Rouge Clinic.
Carmouche found kindred spirits in the Kiwanis International district based in Baton Rouge, which was already working to place AEDs in every school in Louisiana, Mississippi and part of Tennessee. The eight medical groups decided to donate the devices through the Kiwanis program.
Pam Morgan, the Kiwanis AED program coordinator, said the program is gaining momentum despite the initial reluctance of some public and private schools in the region to place AEDs in their buildings, often over liability concerns.
“Many of them are coming around,” she said. A common worry, Carmouche said, is that an AED not properly maintained or correctly used could create more of a problem than not having a device.
“When you have a child or anyone lying on the ground in that situation, the last thing on my mind is going to be liability,” he said. “I just think it’s the right thing to do.”
Supporters of the devices often cite a state law that grants civil immunity to anyone who uses a defibrillator for emergency assistance, except for cases of “willful or wanton misconduct or gross negligence.”
School system spokesman Chris Trahan said the district has resolved legal questions regarding AEDs and is happy to accept the devices.
“We are very pleased to be partnering with these outside groups,” Trahan said. “We appreciate it very much.”
The groups donating the devices are the Baton Rouge Clinic, Baton Rouge Family Medical Center, Louisiana Cardiology Associates, Baton Rouge Cardiology Clinic, Southeastern Cardiology Consultants, Baton Rouge Vascular Associates, CVT Surgical Center and Lake Primary Care. The Our Lady of the Lake Foundation has also pledged to help with the Kiwanis AED program, but is waiting to assess the needs of the school system before making a donation, hospital spokeswoman Kelly Zimmerman said.
Kiwanis is still soliciting donations from businesses and individuals, and some Kiwanis clubs are buying AEDs for schools on their own.
A few area school systems, such as the West Feliciana Parish district, have already bought AEDs. Morgan is hoping more schools, or their partners in education, will buy their own AEDs.
“I think when you have ownership in something, it helps,” Morgan said.
Individuals wanting to help fund an AED for a school can donate to the Kiwanis District Foundation. For information about the Kiwanis defibrillator program, call (225) 769-9233, or visit http://www.lamisstenn.org.