A community member’s life was saved last May on La Playa Stadium with an Automated External Defibrillator, which were recently installed around campus.
Santa Barbara resident George Armstrong was saved by a defibrillator when he and his wife Barbara were exercising on the track and he collapsed.
Armstrong had no previous history of any heart complications and the accident was unpredictable.
Associate professor Kathy O’Connor was with one of her physical education classes on the scene at the moment and quickly responded to the incident. A school trainer’s personal defibrillator was used to save Armstrong.
Paramedics later informed him that if the defibrillator was not used, there is a possibility he would not be here today.
“He would like to take CPR classes and be familiar with [Automated External Defibrillators] so that he is prepared to help someone in a given situation as others helped him,” Public Information Officer Joan Galvan said.
The devices installed on campus do not require any specific training.
“The [defibrillators] on our campus are very hands friendly for anyone to use,” Director of Campus Security Erik Fricke explained.
The defibrillators are user friendly, students must simply open the case where it is contained and the device will verbally start giving instructions to the user.
They are safe to use and there is no way to accidentally shock someone. The defibrillators, when placed on the chest, can sense heart rate and will perform accordingly. If a person’s heart rate is normal, no shock will be delivered.
“As long as you open and read the instructions carefully, there will be no misuse,” Fricke said.
A campus wide email was sent to inform students and staff about the defibrillators last week. The video contained in the email is recommended for everyone to watch to get a clear understanding of how the devices work.
After a heart attack incident in 1996, City College was advised to install defibrillators on campus. The only one that was available to the campus at the time was kept in the security vehicle. Security responded to the incident before the paramedics arrived on the scene.
The school was given a discount on each device because many were purchased. Each one cost about $1,400.
There are thirteen Automated External Defibrillators throughout the school, located near every major building. There are also five off campus at the Wake, Schott, and Cosmetology campuses.
Students are asked to keep an eye out for where the devices are installed around campus in case of an emergency.
