CPR gets an upgrade at the Redondo Beach Fire Department
Redondo Beach firefighters get trained for a new CPR procedure at Fire Station 1 on April 19. Photo .
Redondo Beach firefighters are getting an updated lesson on an old skill. CPR, the life-saving method used to keep hearts pumping and air passages clear, has recently been revised in Redondo Beach to include a high-tech Zoll cardiac monitor that shows responders the heart rhythm on the machine’s screen.
“This is really a paradigm shift for these guys,” said Baxter Larmon, the director of the UCLA Center for Prehospital Care at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. “They’ve been taught one way for so long; now there is a whole new shift and protocol.”
The technology allows paramedics to better understand the patient’s need while performing CPR.
“When they arrive on scene these people are basically dead,” said Bryan Pank, a representative from Zoll. “It improves survival drastically.”
By using this new technology, RBFD officials hope to increase survival rate in Redondo Beach by 30 percent. Currently the survivor discharge rate is 2 percent; they hope to be able increase their current numbers to 10-15 percent.
“That means at least six more people will be walking out of the hospital who may have died,” said Pank. “That’s a big difference for those people and the community.”
The RBFD is the second fire station in L.A. County to be given this training by UCLA, UC San Diego and the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. Previously the West Covina Fire Department was the only other program using this pilot program. Monterey Park will also be implementing the program along with Redondo Beach.
“It’s revolutionary to have a monitor that gives you feedback,” said division Chief Rob Rappaport. “Efficiency wise it’s really a good thing — the monitor’s there to help you and tell you how well you’re doing it.”
The way responders typically perform CPR is universal for each person. However, it was found that compressions need to be different depths for different people, and the frequency of compressions is a different speed for everybody. The monitor will help paramedics determine the correct timing and depth for each incident and allow them to continue performing CPR without stopping to check for a pulse.
Not only does the monitor help responders understand the person’s need while on scene, it also has a memory card that records statistics during the resuscitation process.
“This is probably the greatest improvement I’ve seen in 25 years,” said firefighter Pete Villasenor. “To have instant feedback is amazing.”
Throughout the years responders have had many rounds of retraining for updated CPR theories, timing and practices. Responders are hoping that this new technology will truly make a difference and help revive more people.
“You’re going to break more ribs than ever before,” warned Larmon. “But then you weren’t breaking ribs and people were dying. Now you’ll have more broken ribs– but people will be living.”
With this new program, fire fighters and responders will have the additional tool in their truck to help understand and explain a patient’s emergency situation and, it is hoped, allow a few more people the opportunity to walk out of the hospital alive.
“Before, we didn’t have feedback and didn’t know what was effective CPR,” said Villasenor. “We had no idea why some people would come back [revive] and some wouldn’t. To put it simply, you remember the people in your career who come back — you just don’t forget them.”