Automated External Defibrillators/ Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation
New York State Education Law Section 917, originally enacted in May 2002, requires public school officials and school administrators to ensure the presence of at least one (1) Automated External Defibrillator (AED) installed in each school, as well as appropriately trained, certified individuals in Automated External Defibrillator/Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (AED/CPR) in each school building/annex, etc., who can respond to a medical emergency during any of the following circumstances:
Whenever public school facilities are used for school-sponsored or school-approved curricular or extracurricular events or activities, or Whenever a school-sponsored athletic contest is held at any location, and Moreover, where a school-sponsored competitive athletic event is held at a site other than a public school facility, the public school officials must assure that AED equipment is provided on-site.
Click here for more information on State Education Law Section 917 .
An AED is a cardiac resuscitation device that is used in concert with cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) techniques to treat a person who is suspected to have gone into sudden cardiac arrest. The AED device “reads” the person’s heart rhythm to detect certain kinds of irregular heart beats, which can lead to cardiac arrest, and then administers an electrical impulse to attempt to restore the heart to a normal heart rhythm.
Every Department of Education school is now part of a New York State Public Access Defibrillation (PAD) Program. Every school building has at least one AED mounted at the main entrance next to school safety. Larger schools have other AED’s mounted in strategic accessible locations throughout the building, and all high school coaches have portable AED’s which they bring to all games and practices with them.
Training is available for Department of Education employees.
Remember . . . . . . The life that’s saved may be your own!