Interest in church-owned defibrillators varies greatly
By Julie Kay, 2theadvocate.com
August 6th, 2005
Members of Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church hope
they never need it, but they have it. First Presbyterian
Church also has one, but more congregations have yet
to talk about it.
The item in question is an automated external defibrillator,
a medical device capable of shocking the heart and
restoring its rhythm after a sudden cardiac arrest.
Mary Dudley, health-care committee chairperson at
Shiloh, said her church bought a defibrillator just
over two years ago in order to be proactive.
"I'm a cardiac care nurse, and we have a lot
of people with emergency backgrounds on the committee.
We looked at the cost and we advised Rev. (Charles)
Smith (the church's senior pastor). He said 'Go for
it.' "
The church is no stranger to such medical emergencies.
Years ago, a member in his 30s directing the church
choir had a cardiac arrest. He survived, but the incident
lingered with members of the committee, Dudley said.
While an Emergency Medical Services unit is within
blocks of the church, she said, the committee felt
that when looking at the concept of "emergency,
that time is muscle."
Since having the device, the church has trained members
who serve as emergency responders, making certain
Sunday services are covered, and plans are in the
works to train church, day-care and administrative
personnel.
A physician church member oversees the defibrillator's
use, and a recently ordered mount will mean the defibrillator
will soon be placed in an area outside the chapel,
more accessible than its current location in the church
nurse's office, Dudley said.
"We hope we never have to use it," she
said, in talking about the purchase, "but you're
buying in the event you need it."
In First Presbyterian's case, however, interest in
training on the device, which was donated to the church,
has been slim, according to Marilyn Randall, director
of church administration.
Randall said it is somewhat frustrating that people
don't seem to be interested. But since the church
has never been in a life-threatening situation that
required it, "there's no real excitement about
it I guess," she said.
Brad Bourgeois, sales manager for the medical-products
division of Acadian Ambulance, said he'd like to see
churches take a proactive stance much like the workplace,
airports and other public gathering places.
Wherever people congregate, there is a potential
for people to go into cardiac arrest, whether it's
in the workplace, the home or the church, he said.
Life-threatening cardiac arrest happens when the
heart suffers from abnormal electrical activity, losing
its natural rhythm. American Heart Association figures
say patients have a 90 percent chance of survival
if defibrillation is administered in the first few
minutes. At four minutes, Bourgeois said, brain damage
is a danger.
The nation's EMS response time is between six and
12 minutes, Bourgeois said.
"Every Sunday, there are thousands of people
in one little area, and you never know when you'll
have a cardiac arrest," he said.
Churches are often places of shelter during storm
systems, he said, again placing large numbers of people
in one place.
Many churches, however, while sold on the need, are
watching their bottom lines, Bourgeois said.
"Everybody wants them; it's just a matter of
budgets," he said.
The units cost about $1,900 according to Bourgeois.
Some churches take up a collection or a church member
in the medical profession will donate one if the church
budget is tight, he said.
Bourgeois said his company is just getting into the
Baton Rouge market, preceded by Lafayette and Lake
Charles.
Mark Olson, public information officer for EMS, said
having a defibrillator is a good idea anywhere, including
churches, where there are groups of people. "Basically,
you could have it for 100 years and never be used
or you could use it three times in a month, Olson
said."
Olson said the devices are much more cost-effective
and portable today. "You should have trained
individuals, but it is designed for the general public
to pick it up and use it."
Training is typically offered by associations such
as the American Heart Association, as part of its
CPR classes, he said, or may be offered by the company
selling the units.
At Asbury United Methodist Church in Lafayette, church
Administrator Carolyn Guilbeaux said her church opted
for the units after realizing that while their 3,300-member
church population was active, it was also older.
The church talked about defibrillators for about
a year, she said, until it was worked into the church
budget. Church staff and ushers were promptly trained
on its operation and others are being trained since
the church received its defibrillator a couple of
months ago, she said.
"I was scared to death," she said, "but
when they trained us, it was so comforting You feel
very safe because it (the defibrillator) tells you
what to do."
The church's only defibrillator has been placed in
the church's administrative building, accessible to
Sunday school classes and the sanctuary, the most
populated areas of the church. "It's very visual
on the wall," Guilbeaux described. There are
plans to purchase more as funds become available so
access is even greater, she said.
Becky Williams, director of health ministries for
St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Baton Rouge, said her
church does not have a defibrillator for a simple
reason. The idea has yet to be fully explored, she
said.
In the seven years Williams has been the church's
nurse, she said, the church has called EMS out three
times, mainly for fainting or irregularities associated
with hypertension, but none for cardiac arrest.
Williams said she would also need to research maintenance
issues, calibration, the training of personnel and
how many devices would be needed.
Since devices need to be available quickly, a large
church campus such as St. Luke's might need anywhere
from three to five, she said.
At First United Methodist Church, it was much the
same story. Senior pastor, the Rev. Chris Andrews,
said while he was aware of the devices, it hasn't
been explored by church leadership.
"That's not to say we won't have one or we shouldn't
have one. We have a number of physicians in the congregation
and we have had medical situations that have been
handled and EMS has been here promptly.
"It's the kind of thing, like a fire extinguisher
I guess, where you hope you have one when you need
it, but we've never used it.
"On the other hand, it only takes one time,"
he said.
According to the 2003 Church Law and Tax Report,
the purchase of a defibrillator is an issue worthy
of examination by church leaders, especially in an
aging U.S. population where those over the age of
60 represent the largest percentage in many congregations.
"About 25 percent of all cases of sudden cardiac
arrest occur in places where people congregate, and
so it is easy to see why more and more churches, charities,
malls, airports and fitness centers are acquiring
defibrillators," the article notes.
Michaelyn Bellelo, the school nurse at St. Aloysius
School and a member of St. Aloysius Catholic Church,
said she is in the process of applying for a grant
offered through a division of Medtronics, a major
medical supply company, that would allow the church
and the school to share a defibrillator to be located
in the Parish Hall, between the school and church.
School events such as Grandparents Day and ballgames
as well as church events, such as weddings, where
more people are in attendance, make having the device
available a win-win proposition for both the school
and the church, she said.
Newer technology makes it even more attractive, she
said, explaining that the model she is looking at
has a back-up battery "so it's meant to sit on
a shelf. They've made it so simple. It even runs its
own self-check. Now, will someone have to make sure
it's OK? Yes."
While still working on plans regarding who would
be trained, who would oversee it and other details,
Bellelo said "the first step is to get one."
As for legal liability, local registered nurse and
attorney Alicia Hoover said legislation introduced
in 1999 clearly covers the use of defibrillators in
Louisiana.
Legislative findings at the time said it was "the
intent of the Legislature to encourage greater acquisition,
deployment, and use of automated external defibrillators
in communities throughout the state," in light
of the fact that many communities, while invested
in a 911 emergency response system and emergency personnel,
do not have enough defibrillators.
Hoover said the stipulations are spelled out clearly
and that, if followed, grants liability protection
for those using the devices.
According to the statutes, there should be a licensed
physician or advanced practice nurse involved in the
program "to ensure compliance with the requirements
for training, emergency medical service (EMS) notification,
and maintenance," reporting requirements to local
emergency agencies, that the AED (automated external
defibrillator) be maintained and tested to manufacturer
guidelines, and that expected AED users receive appropriate
training.
Hoover, whose practice largely deals with medical/legal
issues, said it's been her experience that a church
or individual would rarely be sued for trying to help
someone in an emergency situation.
"It's nice to know we have a statute,"
she said, however, and one that so clearly spells
out its intent.
Bourgeois said today's defibrillators are very easy
to operate and Acadian Ambulance trains church volunteers
and staff in a 30-minute session once a device is
purchased.
Both St. Luke's nurse Williams and Hoover, who have
trained on the device in CPR recertification training,
agreed that they are nearly foolproof. "Everywhere
I travel," Williams said, "they're in the
airplanes and all over the airports."
As for the church, Williams said, "Maybe this
is a good time to revisit it." |
