Imagine you’re walking through the park, on a play date with a good friend and both of your children, when the outing takes an unexpected turn. Your friend stops mid-stride, struggling to catch her breath. She begins sweating, and before you can understand what’s happening, she’s collapsed on the ground. What do you do? Cardiac arrest is an electrical malfunction in the heart that causes an irregular heartbeat (also called arrhythmia) and disrupts the flow of blood to the brain, lungs and other organs. It’s a leading cause of natural death in the United States. Each year, some 350,000 people experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital setting. Of those, 90% will die. And while the prompt administration of CPR can double—or even triple—a person’s chance of surviving a heart attack, most bystanders feel helpless to act when it’s most important. Either they’re not confident in their abilities to give […]
