The Richmond Ambulance Authority (RAA) held its first CPR Save Pin Presentation on Thursday. The program was established earlier in the year to recognize employees who perform CPR on a patient who is unconscious, not breathing, and is discharged from the hospital with no neurological deficit. Employees who meet the criteria are recognized with a CPR Save Pin.
Two crews were recognized for two different calls in which they performed CPR earlier this year and saved each patient’s life, with no neurological deficit.
Our Chief Operating Officer, Ryan Martinette, shared a few words about how rare it is to achieve this feat and the impact it has not only on the patient but also on their loved ones.
“Each year, more than 350,000 people in the United States experience sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) outside of a hospital setting. Of those, only about 35,000 survive to hospital discharge, and far too many carry the lasting impact of neurological impairment. The chance for full recovery is even rarer, making the stories we honor today not only statistically exceptional but profoundly meaningful,” said Martinette. The recipients included:
David Word
Townsend Wilburn
and
Stephen (Matt) Linardos
Michael Gatzke
Emily (Eilah) Cook
In addition to receiving CPR Save Pins, Audry Dubon, Director of Marketing and Communications for the American Heart Association (AHA), presented crews with AHA Heart Saver Certificates.
