Onboard Defibrillators
In keeping with yesterday’s first aid theme, did you know that airlines carry a portable defibrillator onboard their aircraft?
Flight Attendants are trained not only in CPR, but also in how to use the defibrillator and to administer a shock to the heart, if it’s determined to be necessary. The defibrillator does all the work of analyzing the heart and what it needs, and makes all decisions about what is the appropriate course of action to take. It’s really foolproof.
Having a defibrillator available buys a heart patient precious time until the aircraft can get on the ground and medical personnel, with a full panoply of medical equipment, is available.
Defibrillators are available at airports, onboard trains and buses, are in most hotels, and a growing number of restaurants and tourist attractions. You may actually be safer traveling than at home when it comes to a heart attack.
Portable defibrillators may be the next “must-have” item for the home first aid kit.
Tags: airlines, airports, flight+attendants, Hotels, travel, vacationRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Air Travel
2 opinions for Onboard Defibrillators
Hsien-Hsien Lei, PhD
Jun 6, 2006 at 10:09 am
Just be sure that if you own or are responsible for a emergency external defibrillator, you keep up-to-date on recalls and other service notices because One out of five are unreliable.
Mary Jo Manzanares
Jun 6, 2006 at 10:31 am
A very good point!
As a Flight Attendant, I don’t have to worry about this piece of things.
I think most equipment that is is a public locations is required to be routinely inspected and kept up-to-date.
At home, it would be up to the individual owner to do that. Just like with every other piece of equipment that you own, medical or other, if it’s not kept in working order when you aren’t using it — it won’t be there for you when you need to use it.
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