Deputy Heart Attack Program Achieves 500,000 Early Heart Attack Care Pledges

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Nov. 3, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Deputy Heart Attack Program, which promotes early heart attack recognition and preventative care, reached a new milestone of 500,000 pledges. Each participant learns the signs and symptoms of a heart attack and pledges to get a suspected heart attack victim to emergency care.

"Like diabetes or cancer, heart attacks have early symptoms. A full blown heart attack can be prevented — if it is caught in time," says Dr. Raymond Bahr, founder of the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care (SCPC), the Deputy Heart Attack program and Early Heart Attack Care (EHAC) education. "Each pledge learns that cardiovascular disease has a life cycle. If a person receives early care before a blockage occurs, then we save not only a life, but the quality of a person's life. If each of our 500,000 pledges stays alert for someone who displays the early symptoms and gets them to care, we could reduce the heart attack death rate in the United States by more than 50%."

This milestone occurs as the paradigm in heart attack care shifts from reactive to preventative. "For years, people believed that you had a heart attack and it was a coin toss as to whether you lived or died. This is the way cardiovascular disease has traditionally been treated," continues Bahr. "By educating 500,000 people with the knowledge that they have the power to save a life, we have created a new level of proactive bystanders in the United States."

Wil Mick, SCPC CEO, concurs, "Dr. Bahr's mission to reduce the heart attack mortality rate with his EHAC education helped usher in a new level of cardiovascular care. These 500,000 pledges help spread the message that early treatment is critical. We know it works because it is supported in multiple studies that equate increased survival rates to active bystander participation."

"However, the EHAC message goes beyond increasing survival rates and bystander participation," says Mick. "As medical care continues to evolve, EHAC also encourages people to seek out preventative care in order to stop life-threatening cardiovascular illness from developing. This is also reflected in the emerging dynamics of preventative health. And in many ways, Dr. Bahr has led the charge in the medical community to help this occur."

The Deputy Heart Attack program with the help of the SCPC will continue to focus on educating the community beyond the hospital doors. "Realistically, the burden of community care has increasingly become the responsibility of emergency departments," says Mick. "In order to help alleviate the burden placed on our accredited hospitals, we are also shifting the focus of EHAC education. As we expand the preventative message and focus on working with key community leaders, then we successfully continue our mission to save lives and eliminate cardiovascular disease."

Dr. Bahr agrees, "We've seen the statistics. We've participated in the studies. We know the EHAC education works. However you must also recognize the human element. When someone contacts me with their story of survival and credits EHAC, I think, 'Today, we've won.'   

About Deputy Heart Attack Program and SCPC

The Deputy Heart Attack (DHA) program disseminates Early Heart Attack Care (EHAC) education. DHA is the community outreach program founded by Dr. Raymond Bahr and the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care (SCPC). The SCPC is an international not-for-profit organization committed to leading the fight to eliminate heart disease as the number one cause of death worldwide. SCPC focuses on transforming cardiovascular care by helping healthcare facilities identify existing gaps in treatment while also implementing strategies that reduce variance of care. Through its accreditation and certification programs, SCPC provides the tools, education, and support necessary to achieve measured success in the treatment and management of cardiovascular patients.

For more information on the Deputy Heart Attack program, visit www.deputyheartattack.org

For more information on the Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care, visit www.scpc.org

Media contact: Jenn Cash, [email protected], 614-442-5950

SOURCE Society of Cardiovascular Patient Care (SCPC)

Related Links

http://www.scpc.org