UCLA is working to catch up to nationwide safety expectations by installing defibrillators in locations across campus, an investment that the university expects will save lives down the line.
The UCLA Office of Environment, Health and Safety last week identified areas on campus where defibrillators are most likely to be needed, and through the new Public Access Defibrillation program, it has begun installing them. An automated electronic defibrillator is a portable electronic device that stimulates the heart to beat again in the event of a heart attack.
“Defibrillators save lives, as the person in trouble does not have to wait for EMTs to arrive to get help,” said David Wei, the program’s coordinator. “Their chance of survival is much higher.”
Ten years ago, President Bill Clinton passed a bill that required all federal buildings to have access to a defibrillator, said Baxter Larmon, director of the UCLA Center for Prehospital Care.
“It’s been in the literature for about 10 to 15 years that automatic defibrillators will save lives. Really, we are behind the curve,” he said.
The goal of the Public Access Defibrillation program is to provide “a rapid response to sudden cardiac arrest for employees, students and visitors to UCLA,” according to a program policy statement.
The program is being funded by Be Smart About Safety, a University of California system-wide fund.
Nevertheless, some students expressed doubt about how worthwhile the program will be compared to the cost and effort put into it.
“Spending money on these things at a time when many programs are being cut due to budget cuts does not seem right,” said Chung Wong, a fourth-year economics student.
Wei, who previously served as a safety technician at the California Institute of Technology and installed defibrillators there, said his team used 911 records to determine where on the UCLA campus defibrillators should be placed.
“Whenever an incident happened on campus, people call 911, and we have the records of every time that has happened, so we were able to identify the most likely places,” Wei said.
Twenty-two defibrillators have been installed so far, including in Royce Hall, Ackerman Union and the North Campus Student Center.
A brochure will be given to each building in which a defibrillator is installed to inform people about how to use it, Wei said.