Oak Ridge Today

Suicide prevention training on May 16

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Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis can as well.

As a resource for the community, the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church Pastoral Care Team will host a QPR Institute suicide prevention training on Tuesday, May 16, from 6-7:30 p.m. in the church’s Social Hall. This event is free and open to the public. ORUUC is located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike (close to traffic light 2) in Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

School board rescue: Bell saves life of Martin

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Don Bell

Don Bell

Don Bell, an Anderson County School Board member, used his Red Cross training and the Heimlich maneuver to save the life of Gail Martin, a former School Board member, during a recent meal at Applebee’s in Oak Ridge.

Bell was honored by the Anderson County Board of Education on Thursday. He has also been recognized at Anderson County Commission meetings.

On Thursday, Bell said Martin choked on a piece of steak during the meal at Applebee’s about a month-and-a-half ago. She grabbed her throat and started turning blue, Bell said.

Bell had taken Red Cross training near the end of his career at Oak Ridge Schools. He is certified in CPR and the Heimlich maneuver, an emergency technique that uses abdominal thrusts to help clear someone’s airway. [Read more…]

Co-workers, firefighters react in minutes to save a life

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Linda Bridges and Michael Beehan

Linda Bridges has a hug for co-worker Michael Beehan, who started CPR when she experienced cardiac arrest. (Submitted photo)

 

Linda Bridges has returned to her desk at MS Technology Inc. after a four-month absence.

To Kurt Oschman, MSTI president and chief executive officer, that is a miracle resulting from the training and collaboration of her co-workers and the first responders from the Oak Ridge Fire Department who saved her life.

The story of Bridges’ miracle began Feb. 25, when she collapsed at her desk. Co-workers quickly called 911, and two co-workers began assessing her vital signs. At one point, she had stopped breathing and had no pulse.

“With excellent collaboration on decisions about appropriate first aid for Linda’s condition, Michael Beehan began administering CPR, with Karen Hamilton providing on-the-ground assistance,” Oschman wrote in the company’s recent newsletter. The two determined that Bridges needed cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and then Hamilton continued to check Bridges’ vital signs as Beehan provided CPR. [Read more…]

Boy flown to Children’s Hospital after near-drowning at Clark Center Park

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After family members and emergency responders started CPR, a boy who had gone missing while swimming at Clark Center Park in Oak Ridge on Saturday afternoon was flown by medical helicopter to East Tennessee Children’s Hospital in Knoxville, authorities said.

On Sunday afternoon, Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley said he didn’t know the current condition of the boy, who might be about eight years old.

The boy had been moved to Intensive Care at Children’s Hospital, Kerley said.

“That’s all we know at the moment,” he said.

The chief said the family had been swimming about 150 feet away from the beach at a picnic area at Clark Center Park when relatives noticed the boy was gone. They started CPR when they found him and called 911. The Oak Ridge police and fire departments responded and continued CPR. Anderson County Emergency Medical Services transported the boy to the Lifestar medical helicopter, which picked up the child at a softball field at the park. [Read more…]

Free CPR class offered by Anderson County EMS, Marlow Fire Department

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Anderson County EMS and the Marlow Volunteer Fire Department are offering a free CPR class on Saturday.

The class is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Grand Oaks Elementary School at 1033 Oliver Springs Highway in Marlow.

“This class will teach you how to perform CPR, use an AED, and also how to recognize heart attacks and strokes,” a press release said. [Read more…]

Anderson County EMS offers free CPR course

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Information from WYSH Radio

Anderson County EMS will host a free community CPR class on Saturday, Feb. 15, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the headquarters of the Anderson County Rescue Squad at 145 JD Yarnell Industrial Parkway in Clinton.

This class will teach attendees how to perform CPR and use an automated external defibrillator—or AED—as well as how to recognize the signs of a heart attack and/or stroke. This is a Heart Saver class for the general public and is not intended for first responders.

Class size is limited to the first 30 people. For information or to sign up, call (865) 457-8609.

Roane State student recognized for helping during medical emergency

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Roane State Student Recognized

Anderson County EMS director Nathan Sweet, left, recognizes Roane State student Amber Kennedy at the Anderson County Commission’s Feb. 19 meeting. (Submitted photo)

Anderson County Emergency Medical Services recently recognized a Roane State Community College student who provided assistance during a medical emergency.

EMS director Nathan Sweet honored Amber Kennedy of Sunbright during the Anderson County Commission’s Feb. 19 meeting. Kennedy is a waitress at Ruby Tuesday in Oak Ridge.

Last December, a customer collapsed and went into cardiac arrest. Kennedy—who had taken a safety, first aid, and CPR course at Roane State’s Morgan County campus—stepped forward and administered CPR.

[Read more…]