El Camino Hospital Collaborates With PulsePoint Foundation To Launch Crowd-Sourced Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Registry

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., June 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, El Camino Hospital, in collaboration with the PulsePoint Foundation, announced the launch of the second PulsePoint mobile app, PulsePoint AED, which is designed to build the most comprehensive registry of public automated external defibrillators (AED) available for use during sudden cardiac emergencies. Santa Clara County is the first to roll out this new app, which is available for free download from the iTunes Store and Google Play.

In conjunction with the launch of the PulsePoint AED app, El Camino Hospital is hosting an AED Location Contest, where participants locate and submit unregistered AEDs in Santa Clara County using the PulsePoint AED app. The top three winners will each receive a prize, such as an iPad.

"We are pleased to continue our partnership with the PulsePoint Foundation on another life-saving resource for our community," said Tomi Ryba, president and chief executive officer of El Camino Hospital. "This week is National CPR and AED Awareness Week and the launch of the AED app is a great opportunity for our community to actively participate in identifying local AEDs and educating themselves about the life-saving potential of CPR and AEDs."

"We are grateful for the ongoing support from El Camino Hospital and the PulsePoint Foundation in educating our community around the importance of CPR and AED use," said Chief Ken Kehmna, Santa Clara County Fire District. "This latest app is a vital resource in providing the most updated information on public AEDs to emergency first responders and CPR-trained citizen responders alike." 

The American Heart Association estimates that immediate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and early defibrillation with an AED can more than double a victim's chance of survival.  Yet, finding the nearest AED can be difficult at the time of a sudden cardiac emergency.  The PulsePoint AED app enables users to report and update public AED locations simply by taking a photo of the AED using their iPhone or Android mobile phone and uploading the photo and location information to the registry. All validated information uploaded into the registry is also provided to the local emergency communications center for real-time display on dispatcher consoles during calls for assistance. Additionally, the app is integrated with the existing PulsePoint Respond CPR app, alerting CPR-trained citizen bystanders of the nearest AED location in the event of a sudden cardiac emergency.

For more information about the PulsePoint apps, please visit: www.elcaminohospital.org/CPRHelpNow

About El Camino Hospital
El Camino Hospital is an acute-care, 443-bed, nonprofit and locally governed organization with campuses in Mountain View and Los Gatos, Calif.  In addition to state-of-the-art emergency departments, key medical specialties include behavioral health, cancer care, genomic medicine, heart and vascular, neuroscience, orthopedic and spine, senior health, urology, and the only Women's Hospital in Northern California.  The hospital is recognized as a national leader in the use of health information technology and wireless communications, and has been awarded the Gold Seal of Approval from The Joint Commission as a Primary Stroke Center as well as back-to-back ANCC Magnet Recognitions for Nursing Care.

To learn more, visit our website, find us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, or view our videos on YouTube. For a physician referral, visit our website or call the El Camino Health Line at 800-216-5556.

About the PulsePoint Foundation
PulsePoint is a 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Its mission is to make it much easier for citizens who are trained in CPR to use their life-saving skills to do just that…save lives! Through the use of modern, location-aware mobile devices PulsePoint is building applications that work with local public safety agencies to improve communications with citizens and empower them to help reduce the millions of annual deaths from sudden cardiac arrest. Learn more at www.pulsepoint.org. Follow the PulsePoint Foundation on Facebook and Twitter.

SOURCE El Camino Hospital