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Community CPR initiative off to enthusiastic startJust as it takes a village to raise a child, so too it takes a group of dedicated partners to teach a whole community CPR. New Ulm Medical Center’s partnership with the American Red Cross and independent certified CPR trainers such as Deb Huhn means that the community-wide initiative to train over half the community of New Ulm between the ages of 12 and 75 in CPR and the use of the Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) is off to an enthusiastic start. Together with these training partners, along with several local businesses and organizations, NUMC can track the training of 509 people so far. “We’ve built a data base and with CPR Instructors like Char Friedrichs at Martin Luther College, Renee Peterson at ISD #88 and Deb Huhn training at Brown County, we are making terrific progress,” said Deb Hertling, CPR instructor and the project manager for the “5,000 by 2011” initiative. Hertling emphasized that it is only through this partnership of CPR trainers that the goal will be accomplished. “If there are others in the community who are teaching CPR, we are interested in adding their numbers to our data base. We want to assure we are capturing New Ulm as a community,” Hertling said. Sandy Rolloff with the Brown County Chapter of the American Red Cross pointed out “the Red Cross is a national organization but we make a direct connection with our community when we participate in this New Ulm CPR training initiative.” “I support the idea of training as many people in CPR as we can,” said Deb Huhn, explaining her long time interest in providing CPR training. “I have been an EMT since 1986 and based on those experiences, I believe this is the most important lifesaving procedure that anyone can learn. If the ambulance crew walks through your front door and you have not started CPR on your family member, those critical first four minutes are gone. People always think there’s time, but there isn’t always time. I want everyone to know CPR.” Hertling pointed out that a variety of people have already received the training. “Of the 509 that have been trained so far, 76 are within our facility at NUMC. We trained 77 people at the Home Show in late March. In April we trained all of the Rotary members at one of their monthly meetings and in mid-May another 40 people at the NUMC Auxiliary meeting,” she said. Other organizations are taking it upon themselves to bolster support for the initiative. Our Savior’s Lutheran Church held a training session at which 22 were trained in CPR. Nine of those participants took home a CPR Anytime kit with the expectation that they would each train six more people who have not had CPR training within the last 12 months. “They have a fantastic goal to train every person in their congregation,” Hertling said. The CPR Anytime kits include a blow-up mannequin, a booklet and an instructional DVD that takes 20 minutes to complete. The CPR training provided on the DVD is appropriate for anyone, including youngsters. Each kit comes with six additional face shields so that six people can be trained from each kit. NUMC has distributed 156 Anytime kits. In mid-May Hertling taught CPR to all the sixth graders at Washington Elementary School and part of their assignment was to take home a CPR Anytime kit and train six more people. Another part of the initiative that has recently been implemented is New Ulm Medical Center’s Lending Library. Through the Lending Library, groups can check out mannequins to train groups of people at one time, similar to a classroom setting where the CPR Anytime Kits would not work well. There are 30 mannequins that can be checked out. The same DVD that is used with the Anytime Kits is appropriate for the Lending Library mannequins. Groups such as Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Sunday school groups, knitting clubs, book clubs or just groups of friends who want to learn CPR can make use of the Lending Library by calling the Community Benefits Line at New Ulm Medical Center 507-233-1990, option 1. Though neither the CPR Anytime kits nor the Lending Library are certification courses, Hertling said, “In 22 minutes you are comfortably equipped with the skills to help a loved one.” Certification courses are available through the medical center’s Occupational Medicine department, the Red Cross and independent trainers in the community such as Huhn for a nominal fee. To check mannequins out of the Lending Library or to find out about CPR certification classes, call the NUMC Community Events line: 233-1990, option 1. For business AED/CPR placement and training, select option 4. |
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New Ulm Medical Center
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