TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) – Life saving measures like CPR have been a big national topic over the course of this week.
Otter Creek Fire Dept. EMS Division Chief Jarred Rankin said that about 350,000 cardiac arrests happen outside of the hospital each year in the United States.
Nationally, less than 35% of those receive CPR before the arrival of EMS.
Rankin explained that survival rates drop heavily the longer one goes without CPR. This makes it even more important for the general public to have general knowledge of CPR.
Rankin said that many fire departments host CPR classes. You can simply reach out if you would like to learn. There’s plenty of helpful resources online.
“There’s a lot of agencies out there that provide CPR classes,” Rankin explained. “I tell people that it’s just as simple as looking up a Youtube video and becoming familiar.”
He explained that Good Samaritan laws protect bystanders who come to the aid of another whether their CPR training is up-to-date or not.
