During National CPR/AED Awareness Week, Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation Spreads The 'You Can Save A Life' Message

PITTSBURGH, June 2, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation celebrates National CPR/AED Awareness Week by encouraging everyone to take two steps to help save a life.  

1. Get trained in CPR and AEDs ... Find a location near you at http://bit.ly/cpraedweek2011.
2. Spread the word in your community ... Create a short video and share it to win at http://bit.ly/youcansavealifevideo2011 .

The 'You Can Save a Life' Video Awareness Contest invites students, parents, teachers, coaches, school nurses and health program leaders to submit short videos about the impact of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and the importance of training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillator (AED) use. The hope is that by creating and sharing these videos, the public will become increasingly aware of SCA, while empowering students and communities to make a difference in helping to save lives.

"We're looking for lifesavers…and each and every one of you is a candidate," said Mary Newman, president of the Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation. "By taking a few simple steps, any of us can be prepared to save the life of someone in our community. We hope to be flooded with videos this week that demonstrate just how simple it can be to make a positive impact on survival."

Students from elementary school through college are invited to create a short (2- to 3-minute) video promoting the importance of recognizing SCA, calling 9-1-1, giving CPR or chest compressions, and using an AED to help save a life. A panel of judges will review the entries for creativity, degree of student participation, content, and likelihood to raise awareness. While technical accuracy is not a primary focus in the judging, one of the objectives of the contest is to encourage the development—through awareness, training and confidence-building—of potentially life-saving skills. Entrants who leverage social media—YouTube, Facebook, Twitter (using the hashtag #CPRweek), etc.—to promote their video and encourage family, friends and community members to share it may gain an advantage in awareness points.

The winner in each contest category (Elementary, Secondary, College/University/Vocational Technical School) will receive a CPR Anytime™ Kit. The Grand Prize winner will also receive an AED—provided by Zoll Medical—and a Nintendo Wii™ gaming system. All winners will be featured on the Foundation's website (http://sca-aware.org) and YouTube channel (http://youtube.com/SCAFoundation).

Video entries are due June 16. Find more details at http://bit.ly/youcansavealifevideo2011.

About the SCA Foundation
The Sudden Cardiac Arrest Foundation is a national non-profit  501(c)3 organization based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Its mission is to raise awareness and save lives threatened by sudden cardiac arrest by supporting programs that give 'ordinary people' the power to save a life. The Foundation maintains a national database of survivors and experts available to speak with the media. For more information, visit http://sca-aware.org, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/youcansavealife and 'Like' us on Facebook at http://facebook.com/youcansavealife.

SOURCE Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) Foundation