Posted on 03/15/2006 12:33:00 PM PST by Renfield
Anything can be dangerous :)
FWIW, I'm a CPR/AED instructor.
This guy was a total idiot. Shocking a co-worker is mindboggling.
When I was on the local first aid squad (I'm also an EMT-1), we only used AED's. I've only seen the manual type at at the hospital, or carried in by the paramedics.
But the AED's you see at malls and airports, etc. are not only safe, they deliver a shock that is so mild that it isn't really deadly anymore. The new generation of AED's actually deliver multiple shocks in different directions (or phases) and reset the heart to normal sinus rythym without having to use a big shock.
They used to warn rescuers not to be on wet or metal surfaces, but that is no longer warned as the amount of electricity is so low.
Now, don't get me wrong, YOU SHOULD NEVER, NEVER NEVER PUT A functioning AED on a healthy person. There is always a risk. Heck, people go into cardiac arrest sometimes after being hit in the chest.
Don't do stupid things is the moral I believe.
Those are marketed towards non-medical personel. You'll find them in airports etc. The ones that nurses, doctors, EMT's and paramedics have access to are manually operated. The idea is that any of the above can make a better defib call than a computer program. The computer program however can do a better job of second guessing brick layers and cab drivers.
I know this is a tragedy, but I just can't stop laughing about this story. I keep trying to picture the look on his face after he defibrillated a co-worker to death.
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