New app helps community responders provide 'sidewalk CPR'

The PulsePoint app was launched recently as a joint effort between the Cape Girardeau Fire Department and Saint Francis Medical Center. It’s a tool to help community members perform hands-only compressions, otherwise known as “sidewalk CPR,” for 7 to 8 minutes.

According to a story by Marybeth Niederkorn in the Southeast Missourian, the app guides users through the process and acts as a portable scanner so the user can see what the fire department is responding to.

“Every minute that goes by in a cardiac arrest situation means the survivability rate goes down 7 to 10%,” Cape Girardeau Fire Department fire chief Travis Hollis said. “Without someone pumping on your chest, chances of survival start to become pretty slim. It’s important to have people in households and community responders to help us out.”

Next up is training. A lineup of CPR education opportunities are now scheduled as a way to get more people trained to provide this life-saving treatment. Training will be offered at upcoming farmers markets, including from noon to 5 p.m. Thursday at West Park Mall and from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Cape Riverfront Market. Full CPR classes, free of charge, will be offered on the following days and times: 4 to 8 p.m. Sept. 18 at the Shawnee Park Center; 6 to 10 p.m. Sept. 19 at the Osage Centre; 4 to 8 p.m. Sept. 28 at the Osage Centre; and 1 to 5 p.m. Oct. 4 at the Shawnee Park Center.

Whether you choose to learn the hands-only method or go through the full CPR training, these are opportunities worth considering. Having an individual with CPR training on the scene when a cardiac event takes place can be the difference between life and death.