April 26, 2016, 12:35a.m. – THE UNIVERSITY participated in the first mass training on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) yesterday, April 25.
Over 200 Thomasian students and employees participated in the training at the Arch fo the Centuries and Benavides Park, where they were taught first aid and the use of CPR. The University was one of 60 sites in the Philippines that took part in the event.
Dr. Don Robespierre Reyes of the University’s CPR program led Thomasian cardiologists who participated in the event. The event was also in support of House Bill No. 3061 that seeks to require CPR training for students under the K to 12 program, he said.
“This is also in line with the advocacy of the Philippine Heart Association (PHA), particularly the council on CPR, for the Philippines to be CPR-ready,” he said.
CPR training in schools and communities is a practice in Asean neighbors Malaysia and Singapore, as well as Japan. In the United States, 27 states have mandated the teaching of CPR skills in high schools and made it a requisite to graduation. Norway has been doing this since 1960.
CPR helps maintain blood flow to the heart and brain during emergencies. Administering CPR can immediately double or triple the chances of a victim’s survival from cardiac arrest, which falls to one percent without the help of CPR.
The event was organized by the Thomasian Heart Specialist Alumni Association, Philippine Heart Association, Philippine College of Cardiology, and the Council on Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation in collaboration with Department of Health, the Philippine National Red Cross and the American Heart Association. Kimberly Joy V. Naparan
