MHS students learn CPR training

Magnolia teacher Julie Carter (left) helps MHS students learn CPR techniques at a recent assembly.
Magnolia teacher Julie Carter (left) helps MHS students learn CPR techniques at a recent assembly.

Magnolia High School students were recently presented with “CPR-In-Schools” training kits thanks to an agreement with Farmers Bank and Trust and the Central Arkansas Office of the American Heart Association. Each training kit is designed to teach the core skills of CPR in less than 30 minutes and serve as a sustainable resource for hundreds of students. During an assembly on Sept. 24, 157 MHS students were trained in how to perform hands-only CPR.

More than 350,000 people experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital each year. About 90 percent of those victims die, often because bystanders don’t know how to start CPR or are afraid that they’ll do something wrong, according to the American Heart Association. In a news release issued Wednesday by the Central Arkansas office, it stated that Farmers Bank and Trust hopes these CPR-In-Schools kits will empower students to act quickly in time of emergency, if needed.

In 2013, the State of Arkansas passed a bill requiring that all students have CPR training as part of a high school graduation requirement. Last year nearly 30,000 students were trained.

“CPR, especially if performed immediately, can double or triple a cardiac arrest victim’s chance of survival,” said Tammy Quick, American Heart Association Central Arkansas Heart Ball Director. “Farmers Bank and Trust has been a longstanding supporter of the mission of the American Heart Association. We are so excited their support allows them to support their community locally. By using a kit like this hopefully students will feel more comfortable taking fast action in an emergency and hopefully save more lives.”

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