"DSK" wrote in message
...
wrote...

Here's an item from the daily USCG press release that inspires some
careful reflection:


(snippage for brevity)
COAST GUARD MEDEVACS 39-YEAR-OLD MAN NEAR PORT ANGELES, WASH.


SEATTLE - A 39-year-old man suffering from chest pains was medevaced
from a 600-foot vessel this morning 30 miles off the coast of Port
Angeles, Wash.



Fortunately for the 39- year old man the ship wasn't smack dab in the
middle of the Pacific.


The "typical" or "average" recreational boater is probably at least as
old as the crewman in this incident. How many of us have made plans (or
more importantly drilled our SO's ((as in "rehearsed", shame on you))
and usual boating companions) to implement effective procedures on that
inevitable day when we find ourselves flopping around the on the cabin
sole and turning blue?

Anybody carrying a defibrilator?

Any other good ideas to share?


My "good idea" is one that has already been rejected bya majority of
Americans: eat & live sensibly, so as to minimize the risk of heart
attack.



NOYB wrote:
Every boater who travels more than a couple of dozen miles from shore
should consider carrying an Automatic External Defibrillator. They're
available OTC from Sams club for under $1500...and are absolutely
fool-proof to use.


Agreed, a well-equipped boat could have one of these... we are considering
one, for example.... but they don't make you bulletproof. They can only
help a person having specific types of heart problems,

True.

and only work after you have NO pulse.



An auto defibrillator might help 50 ~ 60% of heart attack victims who fall
down with no pulse. It won't do a thing to help those who have a wide
variety of other cardiac problems.

Most of the other cardiac problems progress to a dysrhythmia...which is what
eventually leads to asystole (ie--death). When a person is in a pulseless
dysrhythmia, you should hook up the AED, and the AED may normalize the
rhythm and restore the pulse.



And major point: it's *ABSOLUTELY* not a substitute for thorough first-aid
& CPR training.

Agreed. I just got re-certified in BLS for Healthcare Providers, and AED
training. Not 2 weeks later, the AHA released a new protocol:

Evaluate for responsiveness/pulse/breathing
AED first...single shock *then* CPR for adolescents and adults
30:2 compressions to breaths (for adults).

http://www.americanheart.org/downloa...Winter2005.pdf