GEORGETOWN — A new automatic external defibrillator (AED) was installed this month at the Georgetown Middle High School as a result of teamwork between residents, non-profits, the Town, Fire and Georgetown Public Schools.
AEDs are portable medical devices that analyze the heart’s rhythm during cardiac arrest, and then deliver an electrical shock to restore a normal heartbeat. If an AED is used in the first minute of sudden cardiac arrest, the chance of survival can be as high as 90%. The survival rate of a sudden cardiac arrest patient decreases by 10% every minute that an AED is not administered.
The AED was installed in a locked cabinet at the entrance of the Middle High School — a location chosen to best serve all three nearby fields and the parking lots around the school complex. The locked cabinet instructs potential users to call 911, at which point, Georgetown Emergency telecommunicators will provide the access code for the punch button lock and start emergency services to the location. Installation was completed by the School Operations Department.
The device’s purchase was made possible by a grant from Awesome Georgetown, a local chapter of the Awesome Foundation, which provides grants of up to $10,000 to local applicants with ideas for enhancing the Georgetown community, and the Georgetown Athletic Association, which also donated funds.
Resident Stephanie Fregeolle, whose son Ben was diagnosed with a coronary artery anomaly last year, proposed the idea and worked tirelessly with Awesome Georgetown, the Georgetown Fire Department, and the Georgetown Athletic Association to get the AED installed.
Ben’s condition can cause sudden death in children as young as 7 to 9 years old. Ben was diagnosed and had corrective open-heart surgery, but other children with his condition remain vulnerable to sudden cardiac arrest and stand a much better chance at survival if an AED is nearby.
“Our biggest takeaway from what Ben has gone through is the power of proactivity. Having these AED devices available in our town puts us eons ahead of other areas in the best of ways because we are further prepared in the event of an emergency. As a community, we will be ready and with a clear plan when unexpected events occur,” said Stephanie Fregeolle. “Although the hope is for the machine to never need to be used, the plan is that it is available in the event that it is needed, for anyone. We are so proud of our son, Ben, and everyone else involved in laying this foundation in a forward-thinking, proactive community.”
This is now the third exterior installation in town, with both American Legion Park and East Main Street Field receiving a new locked cabinet and AED last summer. The departments are working together on a future installation at the Penn Brook School. There are already AEDs inside the Middle High School and Penn Brook School. The exterior AED will be available during the spring, summer, and fall field use seasons. It will be brought indoors and maintained by the Fire Department in the winter months.
Georgetown Fire also plans to host a community class in the fall, to give residents the opportunity to learn more about the AED devices and other life-saving measures including CPR.
“We are thankful for Ms. Fregeolle’s efforts as well as the support from Awesome Georgetown, GAA, and the Georgetown School Department in bringing this important lifesaving device to a heavily used community area. Statistics show immediate high-quality CPR and defibrillation can triple chances of survival of cardiac arrest,” said Fire Chief Matt McKay. “Approximately 10 years ago the Town of Georgetown, through the efforts of the Fire Department, was awarded a ‘Heart Safe Community’ designation. Georgetown invested in and displayed its desire to have prepared community with CPR classes and placement of over 10 AED’s throughout the community including the Schools, Library, Senior Center, and Town Hall. Recently, the department identified a gap in outdoor spaces and we have been working toward a goal of 100% placement in heavily used outdoor community areas. With this new placement, and in addition to the previously placed AED’s at ALP and the East Main Street fields, the Fire Department’s goal of getting AED’s placed at the most commonly used exterior community areas is 75% complete. We look forward to 100% completion with a Penn Brook Fields installation in the near future.”
To learn more about Awesome Georgetown, visit: https://www.awesomefoundation.org/en/chapters/georgetown.