AEDs and CPR education in parishes could help save lives

By Bill Doyle
CFP Correspondent

If you witnessed someone suffering from a heart attack during a Mass at your parish, would you know how to help?

Calling 911 would be a good start, but applying cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) or an automated external defibrillator (AED) would be much more crucial.

St. Anne Parish in Southborough is working with the UMass Chan Medical School to teach people how to use CPR and AEDs.

On Saturday, Sept. 21, medical students at UMass Chan Medical School will volunteer their time at a free training program on lifesaving techniques using hands-only CPR and AEDs at St. Anne’s.The one-hour program will begin at 10 a.m.

Raymond Delisle, chancellor of the Diocese of Worcester, said the diocese plans to work with UMass Chan Medical School to eventually hold training at other parishes as well. Mr. Delisle pointed out that some parishes in the diocese own AEDs, but hands-only CPR and AED training is still needed.

“It’s another aspect of outreach by parishes to be ready to assist people in church and church related settings,” Mr. Delisle said.

The training session will teach people how to recognize and respond to signs of cardiac arrest. Working in small groups with a trainer, everyone will practice hands-only CPR and using an AED on mannequins.

Wayne Webster, 72, a member of the St. Anne parish council, took part in a hands-only CPR and AED training session with UMass Chan Medical School at his 55-plus condo development, the Villages at Walker Meadow, in Westborough a couple of years ago.

St. Anne’s pastor Father Albert Irudayasamy mentioned at a parish council meeting that he is considering purchasing three AEDs – one for the rectory, one for the church and one for the parish hall.

Mr. Webster was recruited to coordinate the training program. He contacted UMass Chan Medical School and asked if it would be interested in conducting training sessions throughout the diocese.

“I’m very excited about it,” Mr. Webster said. “I think this is a tremendous opportunity for people to learn a life saving procedure that isn’t very complex.”

An AED usually costs between $1,200 and $3,000 so St. Anne’s is seeking a grant.

St. Anne Parish office manager Melissa Shields knows about the importance of AEDs. Her father-in-law, Bill Shields, collapsed while jogging with his wife, Nancy, in Falmouth in 2015. Chuck Martinsen, deputy director of Falmouth Marine and Environmental Services, happened to drive by and he noticed Mr. Shields on the ground. He had received an AED the day before and he used it to save Mr. Shields’ life. The two still stay in touch.

“He was in the right place at the right time with the right equipment,” Mrs. Shields said. “It was just a blessing.”

Beatriz Bacelar will be one of the medical students training at St. Anne’s. She has completed her third year as a medical student and is spending a research year with Dr. Chad Darling and the UMass emergency department.

Mrs. Bacelar said the training program honors the legacy of the late Dr. Joseph Sabato, a former emergency room physician and assistant professor at UMass Chan Medical School. Dr. Sabato, who died in July, championed the use of hands-only CPR and AEDs.

Mrs. Bacelar remembers Dr. Sabato citing the statistic that the survival rate for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is only three percent in Central Mass., lower than that national average of five to 10 percent. She’d like to give people the knowledge and tools to boost that survival rate.
Jill Anderson, a clinic research coordinator at UMass Chan Medical School, will also be at St. Anne’s on Sept. 21.  

Mrs. Anderson oversees UMass Chan Medical School CPR and AED training in Worcester Public Schools. In January, UMass Chan Medical School second-year medical students, residents and faculty, as well as Worcester Police officers, trained more than 300 students in hands-only CPR at North High School.

Mrs. Bacelar said it’s important to keep the language and steps simple so people aren’t intimidated. She said the greatest challenge in teaching people about hands-only CPR and AEDs is getting them to feel comfortable. Many people are not comfortable administering mouth to mouth resuscitation, but Mrs. Bacelar said hands-only CPR is not only more comfortable to administer, it is more important because it gets the heart and blood pumping again. The training program will teach people how fast and deep to pump.

Abigail Lopes, another clinical research coordinator, is overseeing the UMass Chan Medical School training program and she will also be at St. Anne’s.

Dr. Darling spoke at the training session at Mr. Webster’s condo development and Mr. Webster remembers him saying that if someone called 911 and waited the usual 7-10 minutes for emergency help to arrive, the chances were slim that EMTs could help much.

Applying hands-only CPR would keep the blood flowing and an AED could return the heart beat to a regular rhythm. Then EMTs could be more helpful when they arrive at the scene.
Mr. Webster said he learned to make sure the person is breathing and then put the palm of his hand over the top of his other hand and repeatedly push the bottom of the person’s sternum.

“It’s not a certification program,” Mr. Webster said. “It’s truly to put you in a position where if you see somebody in cardiac arrest, you can keep them going while you wait for the ambulance.”

So far, 40 people have registered for the program and attendance is limited to 60. Anyone else interested in registering should contact Father Irudayasamy at teachmetosavealife@gmail.com. Provide your name, church, email address and a phone number. You could also contact Mr. Webster at wayne.wewebster@aol.com.

You do not have to be a St. Anne parishioner to register. “We hope the combination of UMass and the diocese will allow this to spread right through Worcester and educate a lot of people,” Mr. Webster said.