Emergency national CPR training 

Chances are that, should someone collapse suddenly at the work place, or at the market place or at a school in my village or at the lorry park, that person will likely perish.  

It is not for lack of sympathy alone but a genuine lack of knowledge in executing Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).  The sad thing is that, many people had lost their lives or had become permanently handicapped because they were not fortunate to encounter a seizure in the presence of someone with knowledge on how to perform CPR.  

Health practitioners have declared on numerous occasions that the help a victim obtains, the first few minutes after collapse, is very critical to his or her survival.  It is therefore imperative that CPR training becomes mandatory for every citizen so that in emergency situations, help can be offered to anyone who falls victim to cardio muscular attack.  

I read of a story where a lady fell victim to a cardio muscular attack on a plane. 

 Fortunately for her, there was a Doctor on the plane and a CPR was performed on her.  The plane then was diverted to the nearest airport for an emergency landing and the lady was transferred to a hospital for further care. 

 Imagine what could have happened if there was no one on the plane who had knowledge about CPR.  The fate of the lady, would have been disastrous.  Life is full of uncertainties and therefore there is an urgent need for this CPR emergency training programme. 

 Although everybody is important, there are certain individuals who if we lose them can seriously affect the fortunes of this country because of the roles they play as well as the investments the state has made in them.  

A carefully planned programme must be put in place by the ministry responsible for health, which in our case is the Ministry of Health.  It should start from the security agencies, then the schools, then groups like drivers’ unions, political parties etc.  

There should be a deliberate effort to let citizens appreciate the need for knowledge acquisition in how to administer CPR.  The issue of re-training must also be given adequate attention.  

New knowledge that evolves in that field must be incorporated in the training and re-training programme.  Adequate resources must be deployed to ensure that this national effort to make CPR training available to every citizen.   

The approach towards the CPR knowledge training, must be considered as a national emergency so that the whole country will be motivated to get involved.  It must incorporate certain aspects of first aid because there could be instances where a victim who after being revived may still die as a result of loss of blood through bleeding.  

If those who administer CPR possess basic knowledge in first aid, it may go a long way in preventing loss of lives.  We can change things if something goes wrong. We can resolve issues when disagreements happen.  

When we lose lives, we cannot resurrect them just like what former President Bush once said and was reiterated by our former President Nana Akufo-Addo.  Let us become interested in life sustaining issues as a people so that we are always prepared to deal with life’s health emergencies. God bless. 

By Laud Kissi-Mensah