I am so appreciative of the people in my neighborhood (Sanibel south of Pinellas Place) who took the initiative to get the AED program going! It took many hours of organizing and there were so many people that offered to be "first responders" that they had too many!

As a former paramedic I highly endorse this program but the results are probably a bit overstated. According to the American Heart Association the national average for resuscitation following arrest averaged about 9% for the past two years. The "in hospital" survival following sudden arrest was 23%. Lazenby claims over 40% for the Villages. Every hospital has fulltime "code teams" trained physicians, nurses and respiratory therapists, responding with all the medications and resuscitative equipment available only in a hospital. Doubtful that volunteer residents with AEDs would be twice as successful.

I don't think TVs numbers include what goes on in a hospital if a person has a heart attack. I believe these numbers are based on response time when EMT is involved and when you have neighborhood response getting there sooner. I thought I heard the response time in our neighborhood is well under 2 minutes. I am not a medical person and possibly have no idea what I am talking about but believe this is correct.

As a Registered Nurse- I can tell you that some type of intervention is better than waiting for EMS. An AED will not save a life in Respiratory Arrest- however will assist in getting more people at the scene to assist quickly. Train yourself in correct ways to perform CPR along with the use of AED.
Of course people have better survival rates in hospital-our response time is seconds with highly qualified people who have access to multiple pieces of equipment to save lives every day.
I hope that TV AED program continues to grow and educate more people on quick responses can actually save a life. We live in a community with age as a factor (if the only factor) to have a cardiac event. You can be quite healthy and your own genetic profile will result in some type of cardiac event which increases the odds with age.
One life saved in The Villages is worth having one in each neighborhood.

Personally, I wouldn't blame old age or genetics. If there's a family history of heart disease, a person should be eating a heart-healthy diet (a diet that many people claim is too strict). Genes need to be triggered by a poor diet and, secondarily, lack of exercise, and many are not even close to eating a heart healthy diet. Just look at all those who obviously sport huge waistlines of 40 inches or more.

If you are one of those people or have people like that in your neighborhood, I'm not surprised at your enthusiasm for these devices. But I see it differently. I see it as a big failure, a lack of personal responsibility as far as taking one's health seriously.

So, would I chip in $100. for one of these devices? No! Those who would do themselves in by eating junk-food will eventually do themselves in anyway. You save them once and the next time it will be during the night when no one knows they are having a heart attack.

It seems a big contradiction that we call The Villages "America's Healthiest Hometown" and then we need AED devices in every neighborhood. I would rather see people taking their health more seriously and educating themselves about how to prevent heart disease and how to reverse heart disease.

May I ask PL, what happens if one eats right, exercises like Jim Kick but somehow, goes into defib due to an external force like a shock from an ungrounded electric drill or some arrhythmia? No fault of their own. Could happen to you! I've seen it.

During 30 yrs. of my career, I've used AEDs and performed CPR many times. It's all about the "Golden Hour" and a quick response. AEDs do save lives. I realize that 40% save rate is overblown and misinterpreted. My son, a Marion County fire medic, says that 40% represents a tactile pulse, not a save. BTW, Villages medics don't transport. They must call for transport to closest facility. But, again, AEDs are a good thing.

My neighborhood of 63 homes just completed a AED program. We have 20 first rsponders ready to go. Personally for me, as a first responder, I am excited I might have the opportunity to save the life of a neighbor or perhaps my wife. 99% of my neighbors participated in paying a share of the cost to get the program up and running. We had the necessary funds within two weeks.:a040::coolsmiley:

Sorry you feel that AED are only needed because of a failure in diet or lifestyle. Don't agree with you on this VPL....sudden cardiac arrest can be caused by congenital heart disease, electrical problems of the heart as well as CAD or heart attack. Children can experience sudden cardiac arrest because of a blow to the chest.

Not all of our neighbors contributed for the AED purchase, but if they ever need it used to restart their heart, it will be.

I totally agree with you. Having worked in the healthcare field for decades, I have seen it all. None of knows what tomorrow may bring....and although I swim a half mile daily and try to eat pretty healthy, I COULD be one of those who need that AED. If I don't ever need it, that would be wonderful. If ONE.......only ONE...neighbor needs it, I'll be so glad we have it in our "hood". If it is never used, that would be great, too! Better to be more safe than sorry.

I'm grateful for those in my neighborhood who went thru the time, effort and 'love' to see that we have an AED in our "hood".

The trained volunteer residents next door or 4 doors away from either of our villas' AED machines can get to the victim within 1 or 2 minutes, whereas the hospital personnel aren't going to get hands on them for much longer than that, especially if the paramedic squad is out on another call when this call comes in at dispatch.

The fire stations and paramedics are close, but if they are out on another call, the neighbor AED responders can make a difference between and death.

I cherish living amongst so many wise, caring and energetic neighbors. The grumpy, ho-hum few who did't want to contribute might be glad to open the door one night for the energetic, optimistic ones who got the training and stayed with the program.

The response time inside a hospital is almost immediate and they can treat arrhythmias other than fibrillation so there is no better place to have an arrest. Don't get me wrong. The Villages program is a great thing but Gail's statistics are suspect.

Since you feel the figures are suspect, consider this. What do you think the national stats would look like if every community, every neighborhood, had AEDs and teams organized, trained, and easily notified automatically by phone and text message through the 911 system? And these teams can be at the side of the victim within a couple of minutes to begin CCR and evaluate the patient through the AED to see if shock is advised. Since every minute without care reduces the chances of recovery, wouldn't a system like increase the recovery results beyond what we see commonly now nationwide? Because what I described is exactly what we have in my neighborhood, and, I suspect, in other neighborhoods around TV.

My comparison is with "in hospital" rates. I am sure our program exceeds national "out of hospital rates".

my heart attacks were due to a clotting disorder that did not show itself until the first heart attack and not diagnosed until well after the second. In both events my arteries were clear leaving the doctors scratching their heads in wondering why I had the MI's. A defibrillator saved my life one of those times, PUT THAT IN YOUR PIPE AND SMOKE IT , MULES BEHIND!

Shock from an ungrounded electric drill? Sounds like that would be a rare occurrence. Wouldn't you have to be standing in your bare feet or in a puddle? I have used ungrounded electric drills many many times.

Mayo Clinic Diseases and Conditions - Heart Arrhythmia: The Mayo Clinic states that you may reduce your arrhythmia risk by practicing a heart-healthy lifestyle.