Cross Blog

Category: Health and Safety

Red Cross featured on Hero and Zero

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

A young girl, Anna, spent her summer at Camp Happy Heart. On one July afternoon, she was practicing her diving, when she suddenly had a seizure in the water.

An onlooker, Chris, noticed Anna struggling in the water. He was able to pull her to safety and gave her cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Terry Hanson, who works with the John Boy and Billy Show, has a history himself of saving lives through giving CPR.

Hanson heard Chris and Anna’s story and decided to feature them on a segment called “Hero and a Zero.”

He was able to provide some insight into the recent debate over compression-only CPR.

Listen to the broadcast

You take my breath away - and other CPR-related Tweets

Thursday, July 08, 2010

>> Find a CPR course near you today! Most chapters offer adult, infant, and pet CPR.

Pregnant woman: CPR saved my life!

Wednesday, June 02, 2010

Happy CPR/AED Awareness Week! Here at the Red Cross, we talk every day about the importance of getting trained for emergencies. However, this week we want to turn the spotlight on our readers and give you all a chance to share your thoughts on preparedness. Have you gotten trained for CPR before? Have you needed to use your training to save someone’s life?

Let us know through our Facebook page to participate in our contest. We are giving away brand new First Aid and CPR for Everyone kits, which contain materials to help you learn Compression Only CPR. The kit isn’t intended as a substitute for a formal training course, but it is a great way to get started and motivated to learn more.

Below, Amy Jones shares her story on how her husband used CPR to share her life:

My name is Amy Jones. Sept. 7, 2009, was the day my life changed forever.

We were at home in Charlotte, patiently awaiting our “labor” day; I was nine months pregnant, just 2 days shy of my due date. I was sleeping on the couch because I was too tired to go up the stairs. I told my husband, Arnie, to go upstairs for a good night’s sleep because we wouldn’t have too many once the baby was here.

He did not listen to me and stayed downstairs with me, and I am so thankful he did. Arnie heard me struggling during the night, and before he knew it, I had turned blue. I wasn’t breathing and I had no pulse. Arnie placed me on the floor and called 911. He started CPR. After what seemed like an eternity the rescue crew arrived and the paramedics took over. I was shocked two times without any success. The third or fourth time, they got a pulse – a weak one, but it was there.



I was then rushed to the hospital, my life still uncertain. They lost me twice in transport, but once again a weak pulse appeared. Although it was a holiday weekend, the area’s top doctors were on duty and oversaw my care. Once I was stable, they performed a Caesarean section and took the baby. She arrived strong, weighing in at 8 pounds 12 ounces.

I was admitted into ICU. I was then placed in a medically induced coma while my body temperature was kept low to help minimize the brain damage. I was in a coma for several days.

Once I was conscious, they implanted an ICD (Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator) to help regulate my heart rate and to shock me in case it happened again. The first few days after waking were not good. I was not responding well. When I first woke up, I didn’t even know I had the baby. But as the days went by, I regained more of my mid-term memory.

While I am still unable to remember the trauma and a few weeks around that time, I am doing much better. Ten days after my sudden cardiac arrest my daughter Elizabeth and I went home. We are doing really well. I have very minor memory loss. My heart is strong with no permanent damage. I have an implantable cardioverter-defibr (ICD) and will have one for the rest of my life. It is a stark reminder of how close I came to dying.

I now tell everyone I can about my story. My family and friends have heard it so much they are tired of it!

The cause behind my sudden cardiac arrest was Peripartum Cardiomyopathy (a form of dilated cardiomyopathy that is defined as deterioration in cardiac function presenting typically between the last month of pregnancy and up to five months postpartum). I know that I am back to help in my own small way.
I tell my story because CPR saved my life. If my husband did not know CPR, I would not be alive today. If you know CPR, you truly have the power to save a life. It’s something small, but the results are big.

Anyone can be a hero – my husband is mine.

Get Trained
Share your CPR story

Easier to DO than to say

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Happy National Influenza Vaccination Week!

Don’t worry, the action items for this week are easier to do than it is to say!

• Get both H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccine.  Find the nearest one in the flu locator
  
• Send an ecard to a loved one to encourage them to get vaccinated

  The H1N1 (swine) flu virus is still prevalent across the nation and the American Red Cross encourages everyone to get vaccinated against the virus, now that the vaccine is widely available.

  “The H1N1 flu continues to be a health threat, so this is no time to be complacent,” said Sharon Stanley, chief nurse and director, Red Cross Disaster Health and Mental Health Services. “The supply for the vaccine is no longer an issue, and we don’t know whether another wave of H1N1 will occur. The best way to protect yourself and your loved ones is by being vaccinated.”

  Posted in: Health and Safety,Posted in: News | Comment

  So easy a baby can do it!

  Thursday, January 07, 2010

  … so important we want you to know how.

  CPR.

  It’s never too early to be prepared. Check out all these babies saving their dolls’ lives!

  

  Are you trained? Our chapters offer courses to learn how to give infant and child CPR and much more.

  Real life kids saving kids story

  Posted in: Health and Safety | Comment

  HIV/AIDS education

  Monday, January 04, 2010

  Get the facts.
  Share the facts.
  Help stop the spread of HIV.

  The Greater Carolinas Chapter of the American Red Cross is hosting a Basic HIV/AIDS Program: HIV Education and Prevention Instructor Course. The Red Cross works to educate our community on HIV/AIDS.

  Each year, there are more and more new HIV infections, which shows that people either aren’t learning the message about the dangers of HIV, or are unable or unwilling to act on it. Many people are dangerously ignorant about the virus, with surveys around the world showing alarmingly low levels of awareness and understanding about HIV amongst many groups. Education can help to overcome such ignorance, and thereby prevent HIV infections from occurring.

  Education needs to be an ongoing process, because each generation of young people need to be informed about how they can protect themselves from HIV as they grow up. Older generations, who have already hopefully received some AIDS education, may need the message reinforced, so that they continue to take precautions against HIV infection, and are able to inform younger people of the dangers.

  The course is from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan. 25-28. Cost is $200 (includes Fundamentals of Instructor Training) or $175 (does not include FIT, required to pass course).

  Register Now!

  Fast Facts: Learn more about HIV/AIDS

  There are three main reasons for AIDS education:

  To prevent new infections from taking place
  This can be seen as consisting of two processes: firstly, giving people information about HIV and AIDS, such as how they are transmitted and how people can protect themselves from infection. Secondly, people must be taught how to put this information to use and act on it practically - how to get and use condoms, how to suggest and practice safer sex, how to prevent infection in a medical environment or when injecting drugs.

  To improve quality of life for HIV positive people
  Too often, AIDS education is seen as being something which should be targeted only at people who are not infected with HIV in order to prevent them from becoming infected. When AIDS education with HIV positive people is considered at all it is frequently seen only in terms of preventing new infections by teaching HIV+ people about the importance of not passing on the virus. An important and commonly-neglected aspect of AIDS education with HIV positive people is enabling and empowering them to improve their quality of life. HIV positive people have varying educational needs, but among them are the need to be able to access medical services and drug provision and the need to be able to find appropriate emotional and practical support and help.

  To reduce stigma and discrimination
  In many countries there is a great deal of fear and stigmatisation of people who are HIV positive. This fear is too often accompanied by ignorance, resentment and ultimately, anger. Sometimes the results of prejudice and fear can be extreme, with HIV positive people being burned to death in India, and many families being forced to leave their homes across the United States when neighbours discover a family-member’s positive status. Discrimination against positive people can help the AIDS epidemic to spread, because if people are fearful of being tested for HIV, then they are more likely to pass the infection to someone else without knowing. 

  Posted in: Health and Safety,Posted in: News | Comment

  Local Red Cross board gets certified

  Wednesday, December 16, 2009

  On Monday, Dec. 14, members of the Greater Carolinas Chapter Board of Directors took time from their busy schedules to learn CPR, First Aid and AED.

  

  Chair Mike Rash encouraged all the board members to get certified through taking the Red Cross course.

  “This is very dear to my heart,” Rash said. He suffered a heart attack earlier this year. Soon after, Rash and the chapter board chair from the Triangle Chapter challenged each other to have 100 percent of their boards certified in First Aid, CPR and AED.

  

  Tate Ogburn, who is a board member and also certified Red Cross instructor, led the board in their skills session on Monday.

  “I just hope no one ever has to use it!” he said.

  More photos
  Get trained!

  Posted in: Health and Safety | Comment

  What does it cost to save a life?

  Tuesday, November 03, 2009

  The answer: less than $1. Through cost-effective vaccinations, the Measles Initiative has helped to save 3.6 million lives over the last decade. On this podcast episode, volunteer Sandy Tesch discusses her trip to The Gambia to observe a vaccination campaign. For more information on the Initiative, check out MeaslesInitiative.org.

  Also: the Facebook Gift Store has added a virtual gift for 60 credits to vaccinate 5 children in the developing world from measles. Send it to your friends!

  >> Listen Now

  >> Episodes 1-12 of Cross the Globe

  You can subscribe to this podcast in iTunes by going to your iTunes Store and searching for “Cross the Globe.”

  Posted in: Health and Safety,Posted in: News | Comment

  Travel Safely With Toddlers This Holiday Season

  Monday, November 02, 2009

  From ChildProofAdvice.com
  When children first begin to crawl, their curiosity about the world around them triples as they explore any and everything.  Pre-schoolers develop motor skills but they have poor impulse control and judgment.  Children don’t have the strength, coordination nor maturity to avoid injury and their curiosity is a powerful force. 

  As a result, they enter one of the most dangerous times of their lives when they are at the highest risk for injury.  Preventable injuries in the home are the number one cause of death of children.  These injuries also transfer to any environment where you are with your infant or toddler.  That can be a hotel room while on vacation, grandma’s house, a rental property, etc.

  The same precautions that you take at home should be taken at any of these temporary locations as they all have dangerous sliding doors, toilets that can cause drowning, doors that should not be opened by a toddler and sometimes access to toxic products that can cause a poisoning.

  Child Proofing needs to travel with you.  We suggest you have a travel kit filled with door knob covers, electrical outlet covers, sliding door blocks, toilet seat locks, a first aid kit, a poison antidote, etc. to ensure the protection of your small children. 

  Also, should there be an accident while your child is with a caregiver, be sure you have a Medical Authorization form completed and notarized so that caregiver can authorize medical care should you not be available.  If, for instance, there is a poisoning and your child is rushed to the hospital while you are finally out for that long awaited romantic dinner, the grandmother cannot authorize care without a Medical Authorization form.  You don’t want the physicians just standing by waiting for you to arrive when they could be saving your child’s life.  An emergency telephone list with details of your child’s blood type, allergies, etc. should also be with each caregiver. 

  There is absolutely no greater devastation than loosing a child and certainly that devastation is compounded when the loss is due to a preventable accident.  Your question is not will your child find hazards, but when.  Take the extra precautions today to prevent a trip to the emergency room tomorrow.  Contact childproofadvice.com for a Travel Safety Kit perfect for protecting mischievous toddlers.
  

  Posted in: Health and Safety | Comment

  Children offer Red Cross safety tips for Halloween

  Tuesday, October 20, 2009

  From Red Cross Chat

  What’s that, you say? Nothing is scarier on Halloween than being unsafe? Don’t worry - prepare yourself by listening to these cute kids sharing rhyming safety tips!

  Listen Now

  Posted in: Health and Safety | Comment
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