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Many workers not trained to handle cardiac emergencies

On Behalf of | Jun 26, 2017 | Workplace Safety

According to a report from the American Heart Association, many Oklahoma workers may not be properly prepared to deal with workplace cardiac emergencies due to a lack of CPR and first aid training. This is significant because there are an estimated 10,000 cardiac arrests every single year in workplaces across the nation.

The report indicated that part of the problem was that more than half of the workers surveyed said that they did not have access to appropriate training. If their workplace did offer some sort of training, it was for either CPR or automated external defibrillator use, not both. Further, half of employees surveyed could not located an AED in their workplace. When the hospitality industry was analyzed, 66 percent of workers did not know where an AED was located in their workplace. Further, the survey showed that younger workers may be less likely to participate in training, though this may be due to a decreased sense of risk .

Safety managers in OSHA-regulated industries who were surveyed generally agreed that more training was needed. However, 33 percent of the managers said that this training only became important after a worker experienced a cardiac arrest on the job.

Workers should be properly trained to handle emergencies that could result in serious injury or even death. If an employee suffers an injury that could have been preventable if workplace safety protocols were in place, then an attorney for an injured victim might suggest the filing of a lawsuit rather than a workers’ compensation claim if the employer’s lack of action was especially egregious and reckless.

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