Cole County, Jefferson City to equip more buildings with AEDs

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Cole County and Jefferson City plan to add AEDs in all new or remodeled county- and city-owned buildings in honor of February being American Heart Month.

The county and city set the goal earlier this month, along with plans to establish a defibrillator map and educate the community on CPR and AED use.

According to MU Health Care, heart disease is the leading cause of death globally with officials seeing an increase in heart issues in the past five years.

"Heart disease certainly doesn't discriminate, it is something that affects us all and nobody is left untouched, either themselves or through their family," MU Health Care cardiologist Dr. Brian Bostick said.

Those at high risk for heart disease include people with diabetes and kidney disease. Smokers, including marijuana and nicotine, as well as people with a family history of heart problems and high blood pressure are also at an increased risk.

To reduce the risk of heart disease, Bostick encourages healthy eating, working out and getting good sleep. Bostick also recommends, outside of an annual checkup, checking in with doctors if a patient is considered high-risk. Heart attacks symptoms can include shortness of breath, pain in the neck and shoulders and dizziness.

"Everyone thinks of a heart attack as a classic chest pain, clutching your chest and bringing it to your knees, but there are other symptoms that can go kind of dismissed as not being my heart," Bostick said. "I always tell people, 'you know your body, if something's not right, get to the hospital.'"

According to the American Heart Association, 436,000 Americans die from cardiac arrest each year with more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occurring outside of a hospital.

Cole County EMS' annual report from 2024 found there were 115 calls for cardiac arrest.

"We want to raise awareness and hope we can build a more healthy and resilient community," Cole County EMS Chief Eric Hoy said.

According to Hoy, only about 10% of people who go into cardiac arrest survive. When a bystander administers CPR, this rate increases to around 30% with the survivability rate more than doubling to 66% if an AED is used.

"Those key interventions prior to the arrival of first responders are really key in making the difference on whether somebody lives or dies," Hoy said.

According to the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation, in a survey of more than 2,000 adults, only 54% of people said they felt comfortable using an AED.

In an exclusive demonstration by Cole County EMS Training Chief Chris Pennington and Training Officer Maggie Bolden, ABC 17 News was taught how to properly use an AED in an emergency scenario.

If someone collapses or passes out, the first step is to see if the victim is responsive, this can be done by shaking or yelling at the victim. 911 should be called before, CPR is given or an AED is brought out. The caller should remain on the line with 911 for further instructions.

If the victim isn't responding and doesn't show signs of breathing or eye movement, CPR and an AED may be needed. All AEDs are equipped with pre-recorded instructions, visual aids, and a repeating beat to help with timing chest compressions.

AEDs are also checked and replaced annually but Pennington encourages people to look at the device and the defibrillator pads for expiration dates.

Before the pads are applied, the victim should be dry, have all clothes removed from the chest and any metal jewelry out of the way to allow electricity to flow effectively. AED's are also typically equipped with a razor to remove hair as thick hair can affect the shock.

After the victim is shocked, the AED will prompt someone to begin chest compressions, this cycle of instructions will continue until the machine can find a pulse.

For babies or infants in cardiac arrest, all AEDs have a child shock setting and some AEDs have child-sized pads. Child-sized pads are not available, the pads should be applied to the center of the chest and back. Chest compressions should be done with two fingers.

Officials are also asking resident to report defibrillator locations in case of emergency scenarios so officials can keep them operational.

"We will be able to see that in our dispatching software, so if there is an AED nearby, we can direct folks to it," Hoy said.

Officials are encouraging people to register for their free CPR and AED training at the police training classroom on Feb. 19.