By Independence Day, Delhi’s all Police PCR van staff to be trained in ‘hands only’ CPR

Heart Care Foundation of India, IMA, Delhi Branch of the Indian Red Cross Society and the Delhi Police join hands to train over 8000 PCR Van staff in a span of 40 days

Heart Care Foundation of India will be training over 8000 Delhi Police PCR van staff in the life-saving technique of hands only CPR-10. The 40-day long training camp is being organised by the NGO in association with the Indian Medical Association, Delhi State Branch of Indian Red Cross Society & Delhi Police. As a part of inauguration, Dr KK Aggarwal and his team at Heart Care Foundation of India trained over 250 police offers at the IMA Hall in New Delhi. The project will be completed by August 15, 2015.

Reportedly, by the coming Independence Day, Delhi will now be the only city in the country where each and every police person manning the PCR van will be able to provide emergency CPR and first aid to victims,

Speaking about the initiative, Dr A Marthanda Pillai, National President of IMA, Dr KK Aggarwal, Honorary Secretary General, IMA & President, Heart Care Foundation of India, in a joint statement, said, “Around 240,000 people die every year due to heart attacks in the country and we believe that 50 per cent of them can be saved if 20 per cent of the population learns hands only CPR. The fastest to reach an accident site or an emergency situation are the neighbourhood PCR vans given the shortage of ambulances in the National Capital Region. We are extremely happy to announce this first of its kind initiative being organised jointly by the Heart Care Foundation of India, IMA, Delhi Police and the Indian Red Cross Society to train 8000 police personnel in this life-saving technique. Hands-Only CPR 10 is easy to learn; can be performed by anyone and is extremely effective. What people need to remember is two things, one CPR must not be practiced on a person who is breathing, has a pulse rate and is clinically alive. It must be administered within ten minutes of someone’s death and continued till the ambulance arrives, or the person is revived.”

“The Heart Care Foundation of India Hands- Only CPR 10 mantra is: Within 10 minutes of death (earlier the better), for a minimum of 10 minutes (longer the better), compress the center of the chest of the deceased person continuously and effectively with a speed of 10×10 = 100 per minute,” he added.

Inaugurating the camp, BS Bassi, Commissioner of Police, Delhi who was the Chief Guest at the inauguration ceremony said, “The Delhi Police is committed to the safety and over well-being of all the city’s residents and this initiative is a testament of this. CPR training is a must for all PCR van staff as it enables them to save lives in emergency situations even in situations where an ambulance may not reach the victim in time. We are extremely thankful to our partners for making this project a reality. It is with great pride that I say that by this Independence Day, each and every Delhi Police PCR Van officer will be trained in the life-saving technique of Hands Only CPR.”

Special Commissioner (Operations), Sundari Nanda said, “the earlier you give CPR to a person in cardiac arrest, the greater the chance of a successful resuscitation”.

Apart from CPR 10 tips were also taught about common first aid emergencies.