Did you know your smartphone can help you save a life?
PulsePoint, a free life-saving smartphone app that is integrated into Spokane County’s 911 system, alerts CPR-trained bystanders in the immediate vicinity of a cardiac emergency, so they can quickly get to the scene and start CPR in the critical minutes before emergency medical teams arrive. PulsePoint gives the citizen responder mapping directions, notifies them of any automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in the area, and provides radio traffic of the emergency responders.
Early CPR is the key to survival for a sudden cardiac arrest victim. When a person goes into sudden cardiac arrest, their heart, brain and other vital organs no longer receive oxygen. Researchers have found that without early CPR within the first 3 to 5 minutes, a sudden cardiac arrest victim’s chances of survival are dramatically reduced.
Citizen responders need only be willing to do “hands-only” CPR. According to the American Heart Association, hands-only CPR has been shown to be as effective as conventional CPR in the first minutes of a sudden cardiac arrest.
PulsePoint was launched in Spokane County on February 14, 2014 thanks to a cooperative effort of Spokane Valley Fire Department, Spokane Fire Department and the Spokane County Combined Communications Center.
The free PulsePoint app is found in the Apple App Store or on Google Play.