Automated External Defibrillator - Do you carry one AND are you trained in it's use?

[tc]

Tmheimer- DAN has a slate that shows how the O2 setup goes together, I think it sells for about $6. You could get one for review or talk whoever's O2 kit you're using into putting one in their kit.

gusser17- close but not quite correct. The AED's I'm familiar with (including all the Phillips AED's) will shock both V-Fib and pulseless V-Tach.

 

[Divegoose]

Great if the patient has a shockable rythym (A-Fib or V-Fib), but if patient has non schockable rythym (asystole) chances of success are slim.

I agree with your comments about the importance of CPR. Just to clarify, A-fib is not a rhythm that is shockable by an AED. Ventricular fibrillation is the only rhythm that AEDs are designed to recognize as shockable. In hospital with more sophisticated defibrillators, one can shock other rhythms but you can't do it with an AED. Also Atrial fibrillation is rarely a life threatening arrhythmia. In some circumstances one might want to "shock" a patient out of atrial fibrillation however the procedure is actually called a synchronized cardioversion and not a defibrillation. It requires the machine to read the QRS complex (the tall skinny spike on an ecg) and synchronize the shock appropriately so as not to induce a more unstable rhythm like v-fib. The decision making required to cardiovert a patient in atrial fibrillation is way beyond "idiot proof" nature of the AED. Hope that helps to clarify.

My bad - should have proof read my post Meant to say V-tach and not A-fib.

I just did my recert, and we were told that the AED was useful for V-fib and V-tach. Please correct me if I am wrong, and I'll discuss it with my instructor.

Thanks for the clarification.

Divegoose

 

[bowlofpetunias]

Problem is the shockable rhythms are short lived (no pun intended) so getting the AED there quickly is vital. The chances of getting one to the patient at a dive site within the most beneficial time is quite unlikely. Statistics say the 1 minute without a pulse = 10% less chance of survival with CPR alone and no AED. Pretty sobering. Most agencies talk about the Chain of Survival

Early access next Early CPR next Early Defib next Early Advanced Care

 

[TMHeimer]

Tmheimer- DAN has a slate that shows how the O2 setup goes together, I think it sells for about $6. You could get one for review or talk whoever's O2 kit you're using into putting one in their kit.

gusser17- close but not quite correct. The AED's I'm familiar with (including all the Phillips AED's) will shock both V-Fib and pulseless V-Tach.

Thanks re the DAN 02 kit. Don't need one myself now since I have it all written down. I did check with DAN a couple of years ago and they didn't mention the slate. I think it's a great idea for that slate to be in every kit, and have thought of that before myself. Assuming the instructions are simple for the layman, it makes sense to have them right there--either for a certified person who may forget a step or for anyone who happens to be on the scene for whatever reason and has to use the kit. I can't recall how readily available and "simple" the instructions were on the AED we used those years ago-- other than something like "just push the button and do what it tells you".

 

[gusser17]

My bad - should have proof read my post Meant to say V-tach and not A-fib.

I just did my recert, and we were told that the AED was useful for V-fib and V-tach. Please correct me if I am wrong, and I'll discuss it with my instructor.

Thanks for the clarification.

Divegoose

No you're right. I too should have been more precise in my language and said ventricular arrhythmias are the only rhythms recognized by the AED as shockable. Thanks for correcting my correction.