Did you know a phone app can save a life? Two new applications, PulsePoint Respond and PulsePoint AED are helping Johnson County citizens do just that – save lives.
The Rotary-Kerber Heartsafe Community Campaign, whose fund is held here at the Community Foundation of Johnson County, has made some incredible strides over the past few months toward their mission of increasing the survival rate of sudden cardiac arrest in Iowa City and Coralville by motivating laypersons to intervene effectively using CPR and AEDs. The Rotary-Kerber Heartsafe Community Campaign has partnered with multiple local organizations including: the Johnson County Ambulance, Johnson County, City of Coralville, City of Iowa City, City of North Liberty, and the City of Tiffin, to get the two PulsePoint apps up and running for Johnson County.
The two free applications work hand-in-hand to allow citizens to respond quickly to provide potentially life-saving aid to persons experiencing sudden cardiac arrest in public spaces. The PulsePoint Respond app updates registered users of emergencies reported to 911 dispatch within 2,000 feet of them in real-time. EMS is still dispatched immediately, and responds efficiently, however, immediate response increased survival rates significantly. The companion PulsePoint AED app, which will hopefully integrate with PulsePoint Respond soon, alerts citizens of the locations of nearby AEDs.
The Johnson County Ambulance Service responds to 79 cardiac arrests annually, and with 284 AEDs located around Johnson County, these apps will help citizens to respond proactively to incidents of sudden cardiac arrest near them and increase survival rates for victims of those incidents. The apps only indicate registered users to incidents occurring in public spaces, not in-home or nursing home settings.
The Rotary Kerber Heartsafe Community Fund was created to remember Dr. Richard (Dick) Kerber, a well-known University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics cardiologist whose work continues through the mission of the fund. Learn more about the Rotary-Kerber Heartsafe Community Campaign and the PulsePoint apps today: https://iowaheartsafe.org/.
