Res 0212-2018

By Council Member Eugene Whereas, The Mayo Clinic states that cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a lifesaving technique for someone whose heart or breathing has stopped; and Whereas, The treatment for cardiac arrest is CPR, followed by the use of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED); and Whereas, The United States National Library of Medicine describes CPR as an emergency technique that combines rescue breathing and chest compressions to manually keep blood and oxygen flowing through the body until further advanced measures can be taken; and Whereas, Cardiac arrest can occur because of heart disease, heart attacks, respiratory arrest, drowning or choking; and Whereas, According to the New York State Department of Health, choking is the fourth leading cause of unintentional death in children under the age of 5; and Whereas, An average of 12,400 children ages 0 to 14 years of age were treated in emergency departments for nonfatal food-related choking annually, which equals 34 children per day, according to a study by the American Academy of Pediatrics; and Whereas, Without medical attention, a person in cardiac arrest will die within a few minutes; and Whereas, According to the American Heart Association, a bystander who performs CPR immediately after a sudden cardiac arrest can double or triple a victim's chance of survival; and Whereas, On December 5, 2011, a fourth grade student at Public School 47 in the Bronx choked on a meatball, which resulted in cardiac arrest; and Whereas, Various media accounts of the incident raise concerns that school staff did not respond appropriately or in a timely fashion; and Whereas, Ultimately, the child was unable to be resuscitated and died; and Whereas, On October 21, 2015, a 7-year-old girl similarly choked during lunch, this time at PS 250 in Williamsburg; and Whereas, According to news reports, school staff did not help the child, but instead flagged down a passing paramedic who said that five minutes likely passed before he got there and was able to provide treatment; and Whereas, The girl suffered brain damage and died 10 days after the choking incident; and Whereas, Currently, section 917 of the New York State Education Law requires that at least one staff person who is trained in using an AED be in each public school during school-sponsored curricular or extra-curricular events; and Whereas, However, the law should be amended to require staff members to be certified not only in using an AED, but also in CPR, and to require more than one staff member to be certified in CPR; and Whereas, The American Heart Association and the American Red Cross offer combination courses in CPR/ First Aid/ AED training; and Whereas, The State of New York should take precautionary measures to avoid delays in emergency treatment to ensure the health and well-being of students in public schools; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature to pass and the Governor to sign legislation to amend the Education Law to require more than one school staff person to be trained to administer CPR at all schools during regular school hours. CP LS 1396/Res 253/2014 LS 715 12/19/2017