Enumclaw Community Hospital soon will join the many organizations and public places that have automatic external defibrillators available, thanks to the success of the 2004 Rubber Duck Race. The event was co-sponsored by the Enumclaw Community Hospital Foundation and the Enumclaw Rotary Club.
According to Alan Gamblin, event chairman of both sponsoring organizations, duck sales and race sponsorships brought in $31,500. "I expect that we will net about $30,000, which will be split equally between the sponsors," Gamblin said. A portion of the Foundation's proceeds will be given to the hospital to purchase the defibrillators, which will be placed in strategic locations around the hospital and in the Care Van.
According to Jeannie Matthews, chief nurse officer, the hospital's four AED units will be placed in the hospital's main lobby, Truffles Café, a conference room and the Care Van. "We plan to train every employee in the hospital to use them," she said. "Even though we have healthcare providers who are trained to respond to cardiac emergencies, we also have a large number of employees who are not clinicians. Having AEDs in non-clinical areas will decrease the time it takes to initiate a response when someone may have had a cardiac arrest caused by ventricular fibrillation." For example, she said, access to the AED in the hospital's downstairs conference room could provide a significant increase in the potential survival of a heart attack victim who otherwise would have to wait for someone to come from the Emergency Department on the floor above. "I've not heard of other hospitals having units available in multiple locations, so I think we may be unique in that aspect," Matthews said.
"We have watched how effective the placement of AEDs in airports, casinos and shopping malls has been in saving lives," Matthews added. "We believe that the presence of this technology is just as important for the hospital’s non-clinical areas. It would be horrible to think that someone would have a better chance of surviving a cardiac arrest at a mall or in a casino than in the cafeteria of the local hospital."
AEDs are designed to be used by members of the general public who lack medical training. Their availability in the non-clinical areas of the hospital will allow whoever is present to initiate the computer's assessment of the heart rhythm and computer-initiated shock, Matthews said. "These will not only serve as potential life-saving equipment for our visitors and staff, but by helping to raise our employees' awareness of this technology, they can be better prepared to respond to emergencies wherever they are in the community," Matthews said.
Every two minutes, someone experiences sudden cardiac arrest often from ventricular fibrillation, according to cardiac specialist Dr. Gene Trobaugh. "If someone is shocked within five minutes, there is a 30 percent survival rate," he said. "However, if the person is shocked within one minute, there is a 95 percent survival rate."
The AED units are so user-friendly and the instructions are so clear that people with little or no training can successfully administer the electric shock, Trobaugh said. "The automated instructions walk the user through each step, so it's virtually impossible to fail. A study done at O’Hare Airport found that 55 percent of those successfully administering a shock had no background. In fact, sixth-graders can use it.”
Rotary's share of the proceeds will go toward supporting local high school graduates, community events and Rotary International's push to eliminate polio by the end of this year. In support of Rotary's 100th anniversary, Enumclaw's club is working collaboratively with the city on a major community project to create a park.
"We appreciate the businesses that made our prizes possible, including Enumclaw Travel and Cruise, Parker's Ace Hardware, Tom Poe Diamond Jewelry, Abba Salon, Starbucks and Truffles Restaurant," Gamblin said. "This was the first year that race sponsorships were sold. Their help was critical to this year's success. The Foundation is grateful to every race sponsor for their tremendous support."
