It is with great pleasure that I share with you the news of a successful resuscitation of one of our dining staff workers on January 25, 2010, in Campus Center.
The dining service worker sustained a witnessed cardiac arrest. If not for the effective and rapid response of our Ithaca College community, the outcome might have been tragic. William Lenga and Paul Warrender, from Dining Services, promptly recognized the situation, called for help, and initiated CPR. Officers Ron Clark, Mark Ross, Mark Swanhart, Dirk Hightchew, Brad Bates, and Enoch Perkins arrived on the scene within 1-2 minutes. They took over CPR and attached one of the automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) that are part of the Ithaca College Public Access Defibrillator program. The individual survived, has recovered and is doing well.
As director of the Public Access Defibrillator Program at Ithaca College, I want to commend the excellent work done by our officers and the dining staff workers in successfully saving a life on campus.
Prior to the invention of automatic external defibrillators, the survival to hospital discharge for individuals who sustained a cardiac arrest in the community was 1 to 5 percent. AEDs have significantly increased the likelihood of survival. However, for every minute delay in using an AED the chance of survival falls by 7 to 10 percent.
The Ithaca College Public Access Defibrillator program has been in existence since fall 2002. We currently have over 30 AEDs located throughout campus and with our public safety officers. I encourage you to take a moment and identify where the AEDs are on campus so you may be prepared to help.
You too can save a life!
https://www.ithaca.edu/map/#safety_and_accessibility
https://www.ithaca.edu/sacl/cpr-aed/locations/
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20100302165050247