McMaster offers CPR training for World Restart a Heart Day

In honour of World Restart a Heart Day on Monday over 100 university students across the province will facilitate the CPR training needed to respond to a cardiac arrest emergency, including at Hamilton’s McMaster University.

The day is a global campaign with the goal of increasing public awareness on cardiac arrest as well as the importance of learning CPR and how to use an automated external defibrillator (AED).

From the start of the school year, student organizers at McMaster have facilitated CPR training for over 2,000 students and staff on the campus. The ultimate goal has been set to train an additional 2,500 bystanders across McMaster and the other 11 participating schools.

“We hope that by bringing greater attention to the importance of CPR and AEDs on World Restart a Heart Day we can ensure more people are equipped to help save the lives of those experiencing cardiac arrest,” says Bianca Mammarella, Co-Lead of McMaster Cardiovascular and Resuscitation Student Group.

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Cardiac arrests are the result of the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stopping, with most incidents occurring outside of a hospital and over 90 per cent of cases resulting in death. With quick intervention by performing CPR and using an AED, the chance of survival can double.

CPR is what keeps blood flowing to the brain and other vital organs while an AED restarts the heart.

In addition to conducting as many CPR trainings as possible, Ontario students are aiming to raise awareness and show support for Bill 141, the Defibrillator Registration and Public Access
Act.

The Bill originally passed in 2020 but has not yet been finalized. The next virtual steps are to establish an AED registry in Ontario and mandate the use of AEDs in public spaces in order to save more lives.

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