SALEM - Salem City Schools (SCS) will have access to some new tools in their health classes starting in the fall.

Through their partnership with the American Heart Association's (AHA) Nation of Lifesavers program SCS purchased two new CPR kits for their students and staff to train with.

CPR can primarily be used when someone is experiencing a cardiac arrest, or when their heart stops beating, to boost their chances of survival while waiting for medical assistance.

Each year 23,000 kids experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital according to Gabbi Rosman, AHA Community Impact Director.

Nine out of ten people will not survive.

But properly administered CPR has been shown to boost chances of survival dramatically.

The CPR kits come with personal training from Nation of Lifesavers trainers for the SCS school nurse, Lynda Thomas. 

She will be in charge of leading training for school staff in professional development courses and students in their appropriate health class.

The kits themselves include:

  • 20 total CPR dummies
    • Each is designed to mimic the anatomy of a real human and click when enough pressure is applied during CPR
  • Kneeling pads for CPR trainees
  • A flash drive containing CPR training program materials

On top of learning how to properly administer CPR, trainees will also be taught how to identify situations where CPR may be neccesary.

The funds for the new kits were raised locally by the Salem Community Fund and given to the AHA to buy the kits and supplmentary materials. 

SCS hopes that their improved CPR education can help students both in school and out in the community in their day to day lives.

"They'll know what to do in an emergency, and emergencies happen everywhere," says Thomas.