Lucas Fire-Rescue to hold CPR classes

Students+can+be+certified+in+adult%2C+child%2C+and+infant+CPR%3B+as+well+as+an+Automated+Emergency+Defibrillator.

Kaitlin Anderson

Students can be certified in adult, child, and infant CPR; as well as an Automated Emergency Defibrillator.

Suvwe Kokoricha, Staff Writer

The Lucas Fire-Rescue is offering community CPR classes. The classes are free of charge and are offered each quarter of the year. At the end of a class, the participants will have certification in adult, child, and infant CPR as well as the use of an Automated Emergency Defibrillator (AED) through the American Heart Association (AHA).

When the class is over, the certifications will be valid until two years after the class. The next class will be for six hours on April 13.

All ages are welcome to participate in the classes and receive their CPR and AED certification. Because any age can participate, the classes are tailored to the age groups in each class.

“For instance, if we have a group of Cub Scouts taking the class, we help them through chest compressions and it gives them an idea of how hard they can be in real life,” said Captain Jonathan Haynes of Lucas Fire-Rescue.

Principles of health science teacher Kathryn Barnett said the course would be better for high school-aged students.

“I think it would be rough to do it in middle school,” Barnett said. “I think 16 is about the right age because of maturity and understanding and how the programs work.”

Prior experience is not required to participate in the class. Nothing needs to be brought to the classes either. All the materials will be provided during the classes.

The mannequins and AEDs provided for the class are not certified through the AHA, but they still follow regulations.

“The mannequins have lights on them to tell the student if they are doing chest compressions deep enough and fast enough,” Haynes said. “We also have an AED trainer that simulates a real AED but doesn’t actually deliver any electricity so students can learn how to use an AED.”

All materials, classes, and certification cards are paid for by the City of Lucas. It was agreed upon by Lucas Fire-Rescue that offering free classes would make the classes more available to members of the community to make Lucas safer.

“CPR skills are some of the most important skills that anyone can learn,” Haynes said. “I truly believe this information is invaluable and it is truly the citizens with this training that can make the biggest impact on a patient’s outcome.”

CPR classes also have other applications.

“In almost every job field, it is required that everyone must know how to perform CPR in case of an emergencies because nobody is ever sure how long an ambulance would take to arrive or when it could be too late,” junior Daiyan Chowdhury said. “Being there on the run for a family that just had a car wreck for instance can be a lifesaving moment if we know how to resuscitate someone.”