Other than doing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), it is also very important to effectively make use of an automated external defibrillator or AED. There is a diverse range of AED types, brands, and models but all these have one feature in common – to provide the most appropriate amount of electrical joules to a person whose heart stopped pumping oxygenated blood in and out. It’s up for the patient or the person living with one at risk of heart disease to choose which one perfectly suits for his specific medical condition.
An AED is an electronic and computer-based emergency medical device that was basically designed with defibrillator pads where pulses of electric energy are released. Most types have voice prompts and/or visual displays that indicate the necessary electric shock to be used to regenerate the malfunctioning heart of the patient. For fully automatic AEDs, you no longer need to decide whether or not and when to release the analyzed amount of electric shock while for the semi-automatic ones, the machine would wait for your input before doing so. When it comes to defibrillator pads, various sizes and shapes are featured according to the type of patient the device is intended to. There are multi-purpose AEDs while there are some dedicated for specific type of patients.
It is very important to use the AED properly. You have to be careful when handling the defibrillator pads; unwanted electric shocks could occur if you hold these recklessly. Make sure that the pads won’t get in contact with each other while applying these to the patient’s chest. Don’t even try to pump these against each other if you don’t know how to do what the medical experts do for testing this device. Apart from that, improper use of the pads could also result to erroneous reading of the patient’s heart rhythm and other related vital signs. As much as possible, avoid operating the device in a crowded place. Ask the people around to provide enough space for the patient so you can properly use the AED and to avoid risks of accident concerning the device.
At the same time, you have to make sure that there is no any foreign object, even dust, to get into it. Keep the device away from any type of liquid as well as to magnets. You should also avoid magnetic exposure, EM radiations, and extreme temperature to your AED. Of course, it is essential to keep your AED clean and well-maintained. See the device’s user manual to know the safety measures on cleaning it and doing necessary repairs or maintenance.
To learn further information on using and maintaining an automated external defibrillator, it is best to go for AED Management Program and AED Medical Oversight courses. Take a tour at citywidecpr.com to see what these courses are all about as well as to know more about CPR and AED. This website also provides necessary information on choosing training institutions for such emergency medical services. Go for AED Management Program and AED Medical Oversight training now!
