Dare CPR training in the Sikh community- Age is not a barrier to learn CPR

It was an honour to have the opportunity to liase with the Sikh community and introduce the Dare team to train them in CPR and the AED. What was even more impressive was the number of people who turned up and the age range of the audience!

It was also an eye-opening experience- working with them gave me a chance to better understand their community and culture. Most importantly, I discovered the strong support system they have for their people, especially the elderly.

Mdm Amarjit and her SIWEC Eldercare committee organises weekly activities for the elderly within a 12 week program block. The activities ranges from art & craft classes, to music classes to visits to various places in Singapore. Learning CPR and AED was one of the activities. We conducted it in the Silat Road Sikh temple and will be following up with another session at the Towner Road Sikh temple

Those who were physically not able to kneel down and perform chest compressions were equally keen to learn and even suggested that their role may be to instruct others to help and even get the AED during a cardiac arrest.

It was mainly an elderly audience, where Punjabi is the main language spoken. They leant fast and by the end of the session, seem more willing to perform CPR and use the AED.

Despite language barriers, they were enthusiastic and engaging and asked many questions at the end of the session. It was a wonderful way to spend the afternoon. It is also prove that age is not a barrier to learning how to perform chest compressions and using the AED.

Here is a slideshow from the session...

Real life cardiac arrest survival stories

During the EMS2018 (Emergency Medical Services) Conference at Copenhagen, there was an exhibit on the cardiac arrest survivors. 

Walking through the exhibits, I felt a wave of emotions.. the stories of the survivors reached into my core. It also made me proud of being part of the Emergency Medicine family and part of this effort to improve the community response to cardiac arrests. Science quotes numbers...but to an individual, it is about saving their loved ones.... which cannot be quantified.

One of the stories that really struck a cord with me was the one below. (Apologies for the poor photo quality; please click to enlarge the text in the photo)

In the Emergency Department, I do sometimes wonder if I am saving a life or just postponing death. But than.. who am I to determine life and death? I only have the skills to help and do my best in bringing back someone's loved one.....

Community CPR training- AWDS SCWO CPR & AED training supported by Dare and Philips

Over the weekend of 23rd and 24th September 2017, we had a successful community CPR training session for the members of SCWO (Singapore Council of Women's Organisations).

It was organised by AWDS (Association of Women Doctors Singapore) with great support from Dare (Dispatcher Assisted First Responder) who conducted the training and Philips healthcare who sponsored the event.

Ischemic heart disease is one of the leading chronic diseases. It can lead to a cardiac arrest which mostly occurs in the community. Cardiac arrest can also occur if there are any electrical disturbances of the heart, which may have been present since birth but was undetected. Such may be the case when we hear stories of young fit adults who suddenly collapse during exercise. For optimal survival, all cardiac arrests must be attended to immediately. If nothing is done while awaiting an ambulance, brain death can occur. And once in the hospital, even if the patient survives, they may have bad outcomes due to the effects of oxygen deprivation on the brain. Hence, the chain of GOOD survival starts in the community.

Despite advances in technology in managing cardiac arrests in the hospital, the survival rate in Singapore is low as compared to other countries such as Japan and the Scandinavian countries remains low. The reason may have been the lack of focus on a very important link in the chain of survival- which is the community aspect. In the Scandinavian countries, people were taught CPR and AED in primary school in the 1940s... CPR & AED is now a way of their lives. We are only starting to do so now.

Research has shown:

This simply means that to optimise survival in a cardiac arrest, help needs to be immediate... which refers to bystander CPR. Everyone plays a part- you can help even if unable to perform CPR. It can be in the form of calling the ambulance, finding the AED or even using the AED. The community is a crucial element in the chain of survival. The community needs to be aware and able to help!!

Hence the creation of Dare a few years ago. It is a branch of the Unit for Pre-hospital Emergency Care (UPEC), under MOH initiative.

Dare stands for Dispatcher Assisted First Responder. Dispatcher is the person who is sent to you when you call for help. The first responder is the person who arrives first at the scene. He or she is required to provide help to the casualty. When one calls 995 in Singapore, a dispatcher will be giving instructions over the phone on how to perform CPR.

The Dare program aims to teach laypeople how to follow the dispatcher's instructions and perform CPR and use the AED. It is conducted over an hour and aimed to create awareness and allow people to be comfortable in performing CPR. It is not about obtaining a certificate or qualification... it is about spreading the message and being ready to help!

Over the weekend, AWDS reached out to the various women organisations under the SCWO and trained over 100 ladies and their family members. It was a fun, engaging and educational session!!!! We had ladies of all age groups... and some brought their partners as well as children along. 

Anyone can save a life... if we Dare to help!!!!

Below is a picture slideshow of the 2 days.

Dare training program

The chain of survival starts in the community. Hence it is crucial that the public is aware and able to perform CPR and use the AED. The Scandivanian countries had CPR in their school curriculum since the 1960s. And we are only doing this now!!!

We have lots to catch up on indeed....

Do leave a message if you are interested to learn CPR for free. The Dare program (Dispatcher Assisted first Responder) is a a quick 45min session aim to teach the public how to perform chest compressions and use the AED.

Here is the video: