Moore County EMS Provides 100 Automated External Defibrillators (AED’s)

Moore County EMS Provides 100 Automated External Defibrillators (AED’s)

to Law Enforcement Vehicles county-wide.

Carthage, NC – February 28, 2011 – Moore County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) recently deployed 100 automated external defibrillators (AED’s) to County law enforcement vehicles to expand the AED network in Moore County. An AED is an electronic device that delivers an electric shock to the heart when warranted. AED’s have the capability of savings 50,000 lives a year from sudden cardiac arrest (SCA).

In 2010, EMS applied for a grant with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) received $100,000. The department also received a $17,500 matching grant from the Moore County Board of Commissioners and a $2,500 grant from HeartSafe Moore County (HSMC). 

HSMC is a not-for-profit organization that developed a public access defibrillation program (PAD) model that makes AED’s widely- and readily-available in the county. The organization has received statewide recognition for its work to save lives.

EMS began collaboration with HSMC in 2007 when it helped the organization deploy AED’s to the County’s public schools and to high human traffic areas of the County, such as the Southern Pines business district.

“We set a goal to dramatically improve the survival rate for victims of sudden cardiac arrest,” says Bryan Phillips, Director of Public Safety. “Once we were underway with the schools and business centers in the County, we looked at other partner agencies that could respond rapidly to the patients and deliver life saving electrical therapy. We decided the best way to achieve this goal was to deploy an AED in every patrol vehicle in the County.”

According to Phillips, Moore County fire departments and rescue squads already have the devices, but geography, traffic and call volume sometimes prevent them from being able to get to the patient’s side in sufficient time.

A partnership with County law enforcement was considered a way to supplement current emergency responders in the event of a SCA.  Law enforcement personnel already have cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and AED training and are required to recertify in the procedures every two years, so AED placement in their vehicles was ideal. According to Phillips, the police chiefs and the sheriff were supportive of the idea.

The grants provide 100 AED’s to law enforcement agencies in the County; enough to provide every department with at least one AED while the larger departments received multiple units.

The AED equipment was purchased from Cardiac Science Corporation (www.cardiacscience.com), which has worked closely with HSMC to deploy AED’s in the public schools and throughout the community.

For additional information, contact Scot Brooks, Deputy Director of Public Safety, 910-947-6317 or sbrooks@moorecountync.gov.

Photo caption: Representatives from each county law enforcement agency as they receive the 100 AED’s.  Front Row (L/R): Asa Bailey (Aberdeen PD), Travis Bowman (Robbins PD), Rick Bickel (Carthage PD), Gregory Powers (Southern Pines PD), Justin Newberry (Aberdeen PD), Shirra Johnson (Taylortown PD), Floyd Thomas (Pinehurst PD)

Back Row (L/R): David Bishop (Moore Co Sheriff’s office), R. Laske (Whispering Pines PD), JR Gibbons (Carthage PD), Tim Lea (Moore County Board of Commissioners), Bryan Phillips (Moore County Public Safety), Dr. Ron Milewski (Moore County Medical Director), Scot Brooks (Moore County Public Safety)