Kern County Sheriff's Office has had several Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) within the Sheriff's Training Facilities for over four years
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The Kern County Sheriff’s Office has had several Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) within the Sheriff’s Training Facilities for over four years and has recognized the need for a Sheriff’s Office wide AED Program. In early 2014, the Sheriff’s Office included AED training to all sworn staff and started looking into ways to increase its AED Program. The Sheriff’s Office looked at several ways to fund this costly program, including looking at grants.
On April 1, 2015, the California Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA) and California Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) expanded the Public Safety First Aid and CPR Training Standards for peace officers. The newly approved training now requires law enforcement agencies to train in the use of AEDs to assist with the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) of a person who is in cardiac distress. To date, all Kern County Sheriff’s Office sworn personnel have received the American Heart Association CPR/AED Training. The new state mandated AED training is required to be completed by all California law enforcement agencies within the next three years. There is no state mandate to purchase and deploy AEDs for law enforcement agencies.
Over the past year the Kern County Sheriff’s Office has worked with the Kern County Emergency Medical Services Division (Kern County EMS) to establish a Public Safety Automatic External Defibrillation Program (PSAED). Kern County EMS assisted with the development of the training and policies for the Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office would not have an AED Program without the assistance and authorization of the Kern County EMS.
The Kern County Sheriff’s Office was able to secure funding in the 2014/2015 budget to purchase 304 AEDs. 235 AEDs will be placed in patrol vehicles and 69 AEDs will be placed in Sheriff’s Office buildings and transportation busses. The AEDs placed in patrol vehicles will be assigned to all patrol deputies and senior deputies in Metro Patrol (Bakersfield), all Kern County Substations, Electronic Monitoring Program patrol units, and Work Release patrol units. The stationary AEDs will be placed at Sheriff’s Office Headquarters, all Sheriff’s Substations, the Bakersfield Central Receiving Facility, the Lerdo Detention Facility, all Kern County court houses, The Sheriff’s Range, and the Sheriff’s Regional Training Center (RTC).
Because AEDs are portable, they can be carried and used by trained staff members during their normal duties when assisting injured citizens with CPR/First Aid. When in distress, the heart must be “defibrillated” quickly, because a victim’s chance of survival drops by 7 to 10 percent for every minute a normal heartbeat is not restored. In many cases deputies are the first emergency personnel to arrive on scene. By providing AEDs to our staff we hope to improve the chances of survival for the residents and visitors of Kern County who experience sudden cardiac arrest.
According to the American Heart Association, AEDs in addition to CPR have been shown in multiple studies to increase survival rates by more than 50 percent. The survival rates of cardiac arrests that occur outside of hospitals nearly double when AEDs are administered in addition to CPR. While CPR is essential to maintain blood flow through the heart, AEDs are imperative for maintaining a natural heart rhythm that can help prevent not only death, but brain damage as well.
A sudden cardiac arrest differs from a heart attack because it can occur to anyone, no matter the level of health or the condition of the heart. At the onset of a sudden cardiac arrest, the heart begins dying at a rate of 10% per minute, which means the victim will likely be dead within ten minutes. At five to seven minutes into cardiac arrest, brain damage begins. Emergency response times vary throughout the County. AED defibrillators administered within the first 3-5 minutes can keep a victim alive by maintaining necessary heart rhythm and oxygen flow to the brain until paramedics arrive.
The intent of the Kern County Sheriff’s Office PSAED Program is to provide early defibrillation for the unconscious and pulseless patient. Defibrillation at the earliest possible time may prevent or reduce mortality when used in association with basic life support and/or advanced life support EMS system resources.
Kern County Sheriff’s staff provides CPR to both adults and infants countless times every year in an effort to save lives. With the addition of AEDs, we hope and expect the survival rate to dramatically improve. Although this program has cost the Sheriff’s Office roughly two hundred thousand dollars, we feel the funds were very well spent.
