WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — When life-threatening emergencies occur, people should know how to act. Tony Bixby of the Susquehanna Regional EMS in Williamsport believes this knowledge can help save lives.
"The quicker that somebody can help a patient that is in cardiac arrest or suffering from an overdose or has any kind of bleeding when they can jump in right from the get-go, then the outcomes improve," said Bixby.
UPMC's new initiative, Minutes Matter, is a training program for the public to learn life-saving techniques. There are four life-saving procedures that the initiative focuses on.
"Teaching the community how to provide hands-only CPR and AED use," Bixby said. "We are looking at bleeding control. We are looking at Narcan administration. Then we added a fourth component that focuses on the mental health side of things. Concentrating on not just calling 9-1-1 for people in crisis but also utilizing the new number 9-8-8."
If the public knows how to act, then the jobs of first responders are much easier.
"They have already started that care, and so we know ahead of time what we are walking into. We know what additional equipment or personnel we might need. So, it is really a huge resource for us.," he added.
Bixby says these procedures are easy to learn. He is looking for local businesses or organizations who are interested in learning these life-saving methods.
"We can teach all four of these topics in about a 90-minute presentation that we provide."
If you or a group is interested in learning more, all you have to do is contact the Susquehanna Regional EMS directly to schedule an appointment.
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