Cell phones, navigation screens, car stereos or even eating while behind the wheel…they all add up to distracted driving, and that can lead to serious accidents or fatalities.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA):

In 2015, 3,477 people were killed, and 391,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers.

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During daylight hours, approximately 660,000 drivers are using cell phones while driving. That creates enormous potential for deaths and injuries on U.S. roads. Teens were the largest age group reported as distracted at the time of fatal crashes.

Texting is the most alarming distraction. Sending or reading a text takes your eyes off the road for 5 seconds. At 55 mph, that's like driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed.

You cannot drive safely unless the task of driving has your full attention. Any non-driving activity you engage in is a potential distraction and increases your risk of crashing.

The NHTSA offers suggestions for actions we can all take right now to help keep our roads safer:

Encourage teens to speak up when they see a friend driving while distracted and to share messages on social media that remind their friends, family, and neighbors not to make the deadly choice to drive distracted.
Parents first have to lead by example—by never driving distracted—as well as have a talk with their young driver about distraction and all of the responsibilities that come with driving. Remind your teen driver that in States with graduated driver licensing (GDL), a violation of distracted-driving laws could mean a delayed or suspended license.
Employers can have a significant impact on driving behavior by making distracted driving awareness part of the company’s workplace safety culture:

Establish company policies regarding cell phone use in company vehicles.
Make distracted driving the topic of your next safety committee meeting.
Adding distracted driving awareness courses to your ongoing workplace safety training schedule.
HSI companies Summit Training Source and CLMI offer a number of safe driving topics, including:

Distracted Driving: Forever & Ever

This course tells the story of a distracted driving accident that leaves an impactful and lasting message with its viewers. Based on real-life situations, the course shows how one wrong decision can drastically change the lives of everyone involved. This important story compels drivers of all ages to realize that, when you are behind the wheel, there is nothing that takes precedence over operating the vehicle safely.

Distracted Driving for the Everyday Driver

In this course, viewers will become familiar with common driver distractions like cell phone driving, from creating unsafe situations on the road and how to prevent them from affecting their safe driving practices. Topics covered include safe and effective use of comfort controls, GPS technology and cell phones.

Download this helpful infographic on distracted driving that you can hand out at your next safety meeting or post in your company break room.

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AEDS

In August of 2017 the AHA announced new equipment requirements in order to teach CPR certification courses starting January 31, 2019. In a nutshell, in order to be compliant, an instructor needs to use an instrumented directive feedback device. The AHA defines these devices this way:

“An instrumented directive feedback device measures compression rate, depth, hand position, recoil, and chest compression fraction and provides real-time audio or visual feedback (or both) on these critical CPR skills. A feedback device can be integrated into a manikin or serve as an accessory to a manikin.”

In another article, it was more clearly stated the devices “must, at a minimum, measure and provide real-time audio and/or visual feedback on compression rate and depth, allowing students to self-correct or validate their skill performance immediately during training.”

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO CPR INSTRUCTORS?

So far the AHA has not given clear direction on the number of manikins required per instructor. Questions remain about whether or not an instructor can have one feedback device to use strictly for the skills test portion of training, or whether all practice performed in the class must be done on a feedback device. It has been touched upon in an FAQ to AHA Instructors:

“Q: What is the recommended ratio of feedback devices or manikins a Training Center must have in adult CPR training courses?

A: The recommended ratio of feedback devices is one per manikin (unless the device used is a manikin itself). Please note that any change to the ratio of manikins per students or Instructors in a course agenda could increase or decrease the length of the course. Use of feedback devices may actually reduce practice time as students will be able to self-correct as feedback is provided in real time.”

As of the publication of this article, the new requirement only affects Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS), ACLS for Experienced Providers and Heartsaver® adult CPR training courses in the US and internationally. The new requirements do not include child and infant CPR certification at this time; however, it is anticipated those requirements will also be included over time.  

WHAT KIND OF DEVICES ARE REQUIRED?

Since certification classes require rescue breath training, instructors will still need to have a manikin which allows rescue breath training. There are many manikins on the market right now which have feedback devices already and would satisfy the requirement, from full-sized full trauma manikins to torso-only manikins and everything in between. Several manufacturers also offer feedback infant and child manikins as well.

External devices which either sit on top of the manikin’s sternum or can be placed under the “skin” of the manikin are also acceptable.

The AHA does not endorse any particular brand or type of device.

REASON FOR THE CHANGE

Back in 2015, when the new AHA guidelines for quality CPR were announced, the findings from the research which went into the changes also included information on the more accessible feedback devices being used in some training classes and the impact it had on skills retention. They found students trained with these devices were able to self-correct during training, which gave them longer periods of training at the correct rate and depth. This translated into better CPR performed in an emergency situation.

Drones and AEDs

Drones could soon be dropping off packages at customers' doors. But researchers in Sweden have drones in mind for a different, potentially lifesaving delivery: automated external defibrillators.

Using drones to carry AEDs to people who are in cardiac arrest could reduce the time between when patients go into cardiac arrest and when they receive the first shock from an AED, the researchers say.

The more time a person spends in cardiac arrest before being shocked with an AED, the lower the chance of survival. Shocking someone within three minutes gives them the best shot.

More than 350,000 cardiac arrests happen across the U.S. in places other than hospitals each year, according to the American Heart Association — and a person's chance of surviving is about 1 in 10. Drone-delivered AEDs beat ambulance trip times to the scenes of cardiac arrests, the researchers say in a letter published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Dr. Michael Kurz, an associate professor of emergency medicine at the University of Alabama-Birmingham and an American Heart Association volunteer, sees the potential for AED-carrying drones to help save lives. He says this is the first time he has seen published data on the use of drones to deliver AEDs.

"This is a really neat, innovative method to combat a problem that we have been struggling with for decades," says Kurz. "It's the same reason we have public access to defibrillation. Airports, casinos, large public venues have AEDs on the wall because presumably, it would take a while for EMS to get there. This is, like, public-access defibrillation on steroids, where we just bring the defibrillator to you."

The researchers used drones to deliver AEDs to places in a rural area of Sweden where people had gone into cardiac arrest between 2006 and 2014, says Stockholm-based Andreas Claesson, the letter's lead author as well as a paramedic and registered nurse.

In each of the 18 flights that the drones made, they beat the ambulance time. The median reduction in response time was about 16 1/2 minutes. And the median time from dispatch to drone launch was three seconds, while it took emergency medical services a median time of three minutes to hit the road.

Even though there wouldn't necessarily be a medical professional on-site when a drone bearing an AED arrives, dispatchers could coach people through the process of using it.

Andreas Claesson/Courtesy of FlyPulse

Claesson says the idea to use drones to drop off AEDs came from an analysis that showed some people in rural Sweden had to wait about half an hour for EMS to arrive on the scene of an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest situation, leading to a survival rate was 0 percent, which he calls "catastrophic."

The team used geographic information system mapping to pinpoint locations that would be most effective for the test flights, Claesson says, and drafted predefined flight corridors that avoided flying over residents' homes until the drones were about to land in yards.

But more research needs to be done before we start seeing AED-laden drones touching down at cardiac arrest scenes. "We know nothing about bystander interaction," says Claesson.

One of his concerns: Sending an AED via drone means that there won't necessarily be a medical professional on-site.

The typical cardiac arrest patient is a 70-year-old man, he says, which means spouses — who may not be trained how to use an AED — would most likely be the ones using it in an emergency situation. But dispatchers could help coach people through the process of using an AED, Claesson says.

"We know that health care professional CPR is better than layman [CPR]. But we still believe that if we can deliver a defibrillator within five minutes, the proportion of people with shockable rhythms could be pretty high," Claesson says.

AEDs have simple enough instructions that allow just about anyone to figure out how to use them effectively, says Kurz, whose daughter has a congenital heart disease and is in fourth grade.

"They're fourth-graders, so there's a certain amount of corralling that has to occur, but yeah, they do great," Kurz says.He taught 400 of her classmates how to do CPR and use AEDs this year.

Are you as AED-capable as a fourth-grader? The Red Cross has a step-by-step guide to using an AED.

Claesson is planning a follow-up drone trial in Sweden next summer, when the local emergency medical services receive the most calls.

Kurz says future studies should go beyond analyzing response times and also examine patient survival rates.

"Now the idea of doing this in real life with real patients, when minutes matter, can be demonstrated."

SNOW SPORTS SAFETY AND COLD WEATHER EMERGENCY CARE

For much of the U.S., the snowy season is well underway. Before your family heads out for a day of playing in the fresh powder, make snow sports safety a priority and be ready to respond to a cold weather emergency.

Children’s Hospital of Colorado offers these timely tips for neighborhood sledders and skaters:

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• Choose a good sledding hill, one that has a clear path without obstacles in the way. Make sure that the hill does not end on a street, road, parking lot or any bodies of water such as a pond or river.
• Never sled downhill headfirst.Sit up facing forward to steer. Risks of head and back injuries are greater by lying down on the sled.
• If you aren’t skating in a rink, be sure to call local authorities to ask which areas have been approved and to ask permission to skate on a pond or lake.
• Make sure your skates are sharpened and that the weather has been cold enough for at least one week before skating on a pond or lake.

For skiers and snowboarders, safety becomes an even greater concern. January is National Winter Sports Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Awareness Month, reminding us that the most important piece of gear you can take to the mountain is the appropriate helmet for your sport. According to the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, a study that compared seven “extreme sports” activities found that:

• Skateboarding, snowboarding, skiing and motocross had the highest number of head and neck injuries
• Snowboarding had the most concussions. In fact, about 30% of concussions in extreme sports occurred in snowboarding. Snow skiing was associated with about 25% of concussions.

Always wear your helmet and always ski or board within your ability level. For more on skiing and boarding injuries, see our blog post Winter Sports Safety.

No matter your choice of snow sports, be sure you are adequately dressed for winter weather. As the recent frigid conditions across the country have shown, cold temperatures can be deadly.

Hypothermia and Emergency CareCold, wet temperatures can result in a lowering of the internal body temperature. Hypothermia, a generalized cooling of the body, occurs when the internal core body temperature has decreased to 95° F or less. It is a life-threatening condition.

To help recognize hypothermia, look for pale, cold skin, uncontrollable shivering, loss of coordination, difficulty speaking and an altered mental status. Severe hypothermia can result in the loss of shivering and a slowing of the breathing and heart rate.

To care for the person, carefully and gently move them to a warmer place. Remove wet clothing and cover the person with something dry and warm. Cover their head and neck to retain body heat.

If available, activate EMS and get an AED. As the body temperature gets lower, body processes become impaired and eventually fail. Cardiac arrest may occur.

If you are far from professional medical care, begin actively re-warming the person. Place him near a heat source. Put containers of warm, but not hot, water in contact with the person’s skin.

To learn more about cold weather emergency care and a wide range of other first aid topics, consider taking an ASHI or MEDIC First Aid class. You can find a Training Center near you by clicking here.

Note to First Responders: If you and your crew need continuing education training to fulfill your requirements and help you meet the challenges of responding to winter emergencies, the 24-7 library offers courses on:

• Cold Weather Emergencies: Hypothermia
• Sports Injuries
• Extreme Sports Injuries: Extremity Trauma

Some things you shouldn't leave in your car

As a winter storm is expected to dump snow and ice all along the East Coast this week and temperatures continue to drop, here are some things you shouldn't leave in your car:

Cellphones
Apple advises against storing the iPhone or iPad at temperatures below negative-4 degrees, and they shouldn't be operated at temperatures lower than 32 degrees. There are similar recommendations for Samsung phones and other electronics. Lithium-ion batteries popular in cellphones are the most vulnerable component to cold, USA TODAY reports. They can stop working in extreme cold but should be OK once you get back indoors. However, repeated exposure to subzero temperatures can cause problems. 

Soda or beer
Water expands when it freezes. And for canned liquids under pressure, that can mean explosion. The freeze temperature for Coca-Cola is 30 degrees, and the temperature for beer that's 5% alcohol by volume is 27 degrees (higher-alcohol beers freeze at lower temperatures), as NJ.com reported. 

Musical instruments
Things contract when they freeze, so this can cause some instruments to go out of tune. More seriously, "damage can be done when an instrument shrinks as a result of the cold air. If your instrument is made of real wood, the cold air can cause cracking, which is very expensive to repair. Sometimes they are broken beyond repair," according to The Real School of Music. If an instrument is left in a freezing car for a long period, try to make it warm up gradually. 

Eggs
Eggs shouldn't be allowed to freeze in their shells; if that happens, throw away any cracked eggs. Keep the un-cracked ones frozen, and move them to the refrigerator before use. "These can be hard cooked successfully, but other uses may be limited. That's because freezing causes the yolk to become thick and syrupy so it will not flow like an unfrozen yolk or blend very well with the egg white or other ingredients," according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service. 

Canned foods
Letting a can of beans freeze allows for the water to freeze and expand in a similar way to beer and soda. The USDA advises that this can result in a broken seal, causing spoilage. If canned food freezes, allow it to thaw in a refrigerator. "If the product doesn't look and/or smell normal, throw it out. DO NOT TASTE IT! If the seams have rusted or burst, throw the cans out immediately, wrapping the burst can in plastic and disposing the food where no one, including animals can get it," according to the USDA.

Medication
If you're visiting a pharmacy during the deep freeze, consider that some medications can be affected by low temperatures. "Drugs like insulin can lose their effectiveness if they freeze. The same goes for any so-called suspended medication that has to be shaken before use," according to a report in The New York Times. 

Loved ones
This should be obvious. But it's worth noting that children and elderly people can be more susceptible to hypothermia at cold temperatures, with symptoms such as shivering, confusion and exhaustion, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So even limited amounts of time in an unheated vehicle could be dangerous. The same goes for pets.

Issued by the National Weather Service

For Northwestern Burlington, New Jersey

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT UNTIL 3:30AM EST SAT ...LOW WATER LEVELS ON THE TIDAL DELAWARE RIVER TONIGHT... A STRONG WEST-NORTHWEST WIND WILL CONTINUE TO RESULT IN LOW WATER LEVELS ON THE TIDAL DELAWARE RIVER TONIGHT. THE LOW WATER LEVELS MAY CAUSE NAVIGATION PROBLEMS OVERNIGHT WITH LOW TIDE ON THE TIDAL DELAWARE RIVER AND ON SOME OF ITS TRIBUTARIES. WATER LEVELS HAD DROPPED TO 2.6 FEET BELOW MEAN LOWER LOW WATER AT PHILADELPHIA JUST BEFORE MIDNIGHT. EXPECT SIMILAR VALUES UPRIVER WHEN LOW TIDE OCCURS. A GUSTY WEST-NORTHWEST WIND WILL CONTINUE INTO SATURDAY AND LIKELY CAUSE SIMILAR LOW WATER ISSUES ON THE TIDAL DELAWARE RIVER DURING THE NEXT LOW TIDE CYCLE DURING THE LATE MORNING AND EARLY AFTERNOON.

When the temperatures drop, the space heaters come out

When the temperatures drop, the space heaters come out. Before plugging in or otherwise firing up your supplemental indoor heating, be sure you’re following some important safety practices.

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Home heating fires are a significant cause of injuries. Between 2013-2015, the U.S. Fire Administration reports that:

• An average of 45,900 home heating fires occurred in the United States each year, with an annual average of approximately 205 deaths, 725 injuries and $506 million in property loss.
• Heating was the second leading cause of home fires after cooking.
• Home heating fires peaked in the early evening hours between 5 and 9 p.m. with the highest peak between 6 and 8 p.m.
• Confined fires — fires confined to chimneys, flues or fuel burners — accounted for 75 percent of home heating fires.
• Twenty-nine percent of the nonconfined home heating fires — fires that spread past the object of origin — happened because the heat source (like a space heater or fire place) was too close to things that can burn.

The National Fire Protection Association offers these best practices for staying warm and safe while indoors this winter:

• Keep anything that can burn at least three feet away from heating equipment, like the furnace, fireplace, wood stove, or portable space heater.
• Have a three-foot “kid-free zone” around open fires and space heaters.
• Never use your oven to heat your home.
• Remember to turn portable heaters off when leaving the room or going to bed.
• Always use the right kind of fuel, specified by the manufacturer, for fuel burning space heaters.
• Make sure the fireplace has a sturdy screen to stop sparks from flying into the room. Ashes should be cool before putting them in a metal container. Keep the container a safe distance away from your home.
• Test smoke alarms at least once a month.

Although most of us don’t have fireplaces or wood stoves at our places of business, space heaters in office cubicles or shops are a common source of workplace fires. To ensure your team is staying safe, check out the fire prevention courses from our Summit Training Source library, including:

• Fire Safety
• Fire Safety for Construction
• Fire Protection & Prevention
• Fire Extinguisher Basics and Maintenance

Might find a public-access automated external defibrillator (AED)

Of all the places you might find a public-access automated external defibrillator (AED), perhaps nowhere is it more critical than at a gym. A new study shows that having an AED available at fitness centers makes a significant impact on survival rates.

According to an article from the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation, a study published in the European Heart Journal that looked at data collected over an 18-year period in 252 sports centers in Italy showed that:

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“Onsite AED use significantly reduced the time to first shock from 7.3 to 3.3 minutes...Neurologically intact survival was 93% for patients treated with an onsite AED compared to 9% without an AED.”

This reduction in response time is crucial for patient survival in a sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) incident. Successful defibrillation is highly dependent on how quickly defibrillation occurs. For each minute in cardiac arrest, the chance of survival goes down by about 10%. After as few as 10 minutes, survival is unlikely.

For those unfamiliar with this lifesaving resource, an AED is a small, portable, com­puterized device that is relatively easy for anyone to operate. It automatically analyzes the heart rhythm, determines if a shock is needed and charges itself to be ready to defibrillate.

Or perhaps you’ve seen these devices in a community fitness center, at a hotel or in a restaurant, and have nervously wondered whether it’s really safe for a bystander to use one in an emergency. It is! AEDs cannot accidentally shock someone, it doesn’t take a medical degree to operate one and that moment of shocking the patient isn’t as frightening as the high-voltage drama you see on television shows. For more information, check out our blog post, Common Misconceptions About AEDs.

What You Need to Walk Your Dog in Winter Weather

Winter weather can make it difficult to get your dog out for walks, particularly if you live in a part of the country where ice, snow and freezing winds are the norm. Regardless of the weather, your dog’s exercise requirement stays constant throughout the year, and a lack of wintertime exercise can have a negative impact on your dog's behavior.

When a dog’s exercise needs aren’t met, he finds other ways to release energy, including hyperactive behavior and chewing. Such bad behavior can continue when spring rolls around and outside play is once again an option; for example, a dog who has been isolated during the winter may begin barking at other canines or people on the street. Lack of exercise is also associated with pudgy pooches and the health risks that go along with excess weight.

Just because it’s cold doesn’t mean you need to skip your dog’s walking routine, although shortening the walk can be a wise choice in severe weather. As a Pug parent, shelter volunteer and trainer, I’ve found ways to make wintertime walking bearable, even in the freezing cold of Idaho. Here are some of my favorite tips for walking dogs in the winter.

Walking Equipment for People

By wearing the proper gear, you stay warmer and have better traction, creating a more tolerable winter walk. Dress in layers. Long underwear or layered shirts and leggings can be put underneath normal clothes to keep heat in. Heavy-duty winter coats are a must. Although they’re not the most attractive, insulated overalls are especially helpful for keeping you warm in frigid temperatures.

RED Cross first aid

Before administering care to an ill or injured person, check the scene and the person. Size up the scene and form an initial impression.

Pause and looks at the scene and the person before responding. Answer the following questions:

- Is the scene safe to enter?

- What happened?

- How many people are involved?

- What is my initial impression about the nature of the person’s illness or injury? Does the person have any life-threatening conditions, such as severe, life-threatening bleeding?

- Is anyone else available to help?

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2If the Person is awake and Responsive and there is no severe life-threatening bleeding:

- Obtain consent: Tell the person your name, describes type and level of training, states what you thinks is wrong and what you plans to do, and asks permission to provide care.

- Tell a bystander to get the AED and first aid kit: Point to a bystander and speak out loud.

- Use appropriate PPE: Put on gloves, if available.

- Interview the person: Uses SAMPLE questions to gather more information about signs and symptoms, allergies, medications, pertinent medical history, last food or drink and events leading up to the incident.

- Conduct a head-to-toe check: Check head and neck, shoulders, chest and abdomen, hips, legs and feet, arms and hands for signs of injury.

- Provide care consistent with knowledge and training according to the conditions you find.

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3If the Person Appears Unresponsive:

Shout to get the person’s attention, using the person’s name if it is known. If there is no response, tap the person’s shoulder (if the person is an adult or child) or the bottom of the person’s foot (if the person is an infant) and shout again, while checking for normal breathing. Check for Responsiveness and breathing for no more than 5-10 seconds.

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4If the person is breathing:

- Send someone to call 911 or the designated emergency number and obtain an AED and first aid kit.

- Proceed with gathering information from bystanders using the SAMPLE questions 

- Conduct a head-to-toe check.

- Roll the person onto his or her side into a recovery position if there are no obvious signs of injury.

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5If the person is NOT breathing:

- Send someone to call 911 or the designated emergency number and obtain an AED and first aid kit.

- Ensure that the person is face-up on a firm, flat surface such as the floor or ground.

- Begin CPR (starting with compressions) or use an AED if one is immediately available, if you are trained in giving CPR and using an AED.

- Continue administering CPR until the person exhibits signs of life, such as breathing, an AED becomes available, or EMS or trained medical responders arrive on scene.

Note: End CPR if the scene becomes unsafe or you cannot continue due to exhaustion.

Additional Information

To see the steps to perform first aid and learn how to administer care properly, watch our videos:

• Giving CPR (Adult)
• Giving CPR (Adult/Child)
• Giving CPR (Infant)

You can also sign up for a get First Aid/CPR/AED certified, where you'll learn the latest techniques and earn a two-year certification in first aid from the American Red Cross.

hard and fast cpr

Do not be fooled by other websites claiming to give you “instant CPR certification online.” These so called classes may give you a card that states you took a “CPR class,” however they are not at all accredited and your employer or school will not accept this. The American Heart Association is the only accredited institution that is accepted by all healthcare institutions for CPR certification. All of our classes will give you a 2 year certification from the AHA, including our online classes, which require a skills test. Don't waste your time and money with non-AHA instructors!

Check out www.necprclass.com   for in class room teaching