Our AED

Our Philips Heartstart FRx AED
and Cabinet with Alarm

OurYou may have noticed our new red Automated External Defibrillator (AED) unit (installed in October 2015) mounted in the white cabinet on the wall in the vestibule at The Gathering Center, near the water cooler and the small meeting room. This life-saving device was purchased jointly by Fearrington Cares and FHA.

AEDs are portable medical devices that automatically analyze and detect cardiac arrhythmias of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) patients through electrodes, and are able to produce a shock which stops the heart and allows it to return to a normal rhythm, a process called defibrillation. There is a national campaign to increase the number of life-saving AEDs available in public buildings and facilities, such as The Gathering Place, churches, schools, offices, airports, malls, etc.

STEPS: Call 9-1-1, Use Hands Only CPR,
Use Automated AED, EMTs Arrive to Stabilize Victim 

Since a person's chances of surviving an incident of SCA decreases dramatically within just the first 5 - 6 minutes, it is important that AEDs are readily available for when cardiac arrest occurs.  Optimal AED placement allows a person to grab the AED and return to the victim within 90 seconds.

ByStander CPR/AED

Immediately Call 9-1-1

If you are a bystander in the building and witnesses someone in Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA), the first step in the Chain of Survival is to immediately Call 9–1–1 or have someone else call 9–1–1. If two people are present, one can provide CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) while the other calls 9–1–1 and gets the Automated External Defibrillator (AED).

If the victim is not responsive and is not breathing, CPR MUST be done in the first seconds and minutes after the victim collapses to keep the victim’s blood circulating to the brain and other organs.

What if I Have No Life Saving Training?

If you have received formal CPR training – all the better; however, it is not a requirement to step up and begin basic CPR. The American Heart Association recommends that untrained bystanders perform compression-only CPR to “buy time” until emergency medical personnel arrive. When you call 9-1-1, the dispatcher will give you instructions over the phone on how to do chest compressions.

The 9-1-1 dispatcher will also ask if there is an (AED) device nearby, and will walk you through the steps over the phone until EMS arrives.

In order to use an AED, you begin by opening the cabinet, removing the unit from the cade, and pushing the "ON" button. From there, it is as simple as following the AED's clear voice and text prompts which include directions such as: "Attach electrodes to patient's bare chest" and "Begin CPR." It will not allow you to deliver a shock unless the automated unit tells you to do so.

See a short demonstration of the Philips Heartstart FRx AED in use.

Also see this important information on recognizing sudden cardiac arrest.

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