All schools in the province will soon have access to automated external defibrillators (AEDs).
AEDs have been known to dramatically increase the survival rate from a cardiac arrest, shocking the heart and restoring its rhythm.
Government has issued a request for proposals to purchase 60 devices at a cost of more than $100,000.
The new units will be placed in schools that don’t already have an AED and in schools where existing units will be replaced and upgraded.
Currently, 25 schools on P.E.I. have AEDs, which have been purchased through various school fundraising initiatives by Home and School and community groups, and by the school boards for schools where there is an identified risk among the student or staff population.
Modern AEDs are safe and easy to use. Teachers and staff will be trained to use the new devices by the Canadian Red Cross and other partners,
The school-based AEDs will be added to the provincial AED registry which is a database used by first responders to locate the nearest defibrillator when an emergency occurs in an Island community.
