DC Fire and EMS celebrates EMS Week with CPR challenge

EMS week is May 21st through May 27th. In the District of Columbia, it is being celebrated with a most unusual competition. It has been named "May Madness", the high performance CPR challenge, created in conjunction with the Office of the DC Fire and EMS Medical Director, our Street Calls Unit, and the Training Academy. Its purpose is for our members to engage in a friendly competition that also encourages our Basic Life Support providers to "own the code," and ultimately improve out of hospital survival rates for cardiac arrest victims. Twice a day for the course of the week, several units from each of three battalions report to a designated public location. They are split into teams, with each battalion team working on a CPR dummy that has been calibrated and is feeding data to a laptop computer. It is all data driven. The criteria for grading includes compression rate, depth of compressions, and proper ventilation, among others. Company officers are judged by their ability to command the team and control the scene, and ensure the quality of CPR performance. The second and ultimately final round of the competition will continue into the following week, which is National CPR and AED Week. The final rounds will include tougher and more unique challenges. As for the winners? They will will receive tickets in the Mayor's Suite for one Washington Nationals game during the 2017 season. If you want to watch our teams in action, on Wednesday, May 24th, they will be at 14th and Park Road NW at 10 AM, and on the grounds of DC General Hospital at 2 PM. On Thursday, at 10 AM, they will be at 18th Street and Columbia Road NW, and at 2 PM at the Safeway at Alabama Avenue and Good Hope Road SE.

Posted by DC Fire And EMS on Tuesday, May 23, 2017