Forsyth County, GA and Avive Solutions Celebrate a Life Saved by Citizen Volunteer Through Avive's 4 Minute Community Program

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- On July 24, 2025 a life-saving event unfolded when a trained citizen volunteer from the Forsyth 4 Minute Community™ Program was dispatched by 911 to assist a community member experiencing a cardiac arrest emergency. Within minutes, the volunteer arrived and used an Avive Connect AED® to deliver a defibrillation shock, successfully resuscitating the victim. This is a first-of-its-kind save in Forsyth County.

Forsyth County, GA  is among a growing list of communities in the U.S. to implement Avive's 4 Minute Community Program, an initiative aimed at transforming responses to cardiac arrest emergencies. This recent incident and successful resuscitation underscore the importance for immediate intervention during such crises and demonstrate the program's potential to improve outcomes for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests nationwide.

A Milestone in Cardiac Arrest Care

In partnership with Avive Solutions, Inc., Northside Hospital Foundation, Northside Hospital Heart Institute, Forsyth County Fire Department, Forsyth County was one of the first communities nationwide to launch the 4 Minute Community Program.

The significance of this program is emphasized by the July 2025 save, where rapid action by community volunteers and first responders using Avive Connect AEDs helped to resuscitate a local resident suffering from SCA. This event marks a significant milestone in community-based cardiac care and highlights the life-saving potential and results of the Program.

"I am glad I was in the right place at the right time," says CK Villarouel (responding Forsyth CARE Team Member). "The only thing going through my mind was that I've got to make a difference, or I've got to at least try. I would want the same thing done for me if I was in that situation."

What Is the 4 Minute Community Program?

The 4 Minute Community Program was developed to bridge the crucial gap between a cardiac arrest and the arrival of professional emergency responders. By leveraging historical data on Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) in specific regions, the program equips local CPR-trained citizen volunteers with Avive Connect AEDs. These volunteers, known as Cardiac Arrest Rapid Engagement (CARE) team members, can be alerted by 911 and dispatched to nearby emergencies within a 1-mile radius via a mapping system. The goal of this program is to get an AED on-scene faster to provide lifesaving care while emergency response professionals are en route.

Unlike traditional AEDs, the Avive Connect AED leverages its REALConnect™ Software to enable Intelligent Response technology and transform emergency cardiac care. Intelligent Response empowers 911 telecommunicators to dispatch nearby Avive Connect AEDs to the scene of Sudden Cardiac Arrest emergencies. Once triggered, AEDs that are in close proximity to the emergency then flash a red screen and sound an alarm, giving CARE team members directions to the scene and guiding them through the emergency with step-by-step CPR and defibrillation instructions. This seamless coordination between CARE team members, next-generation AED technology, and emergency services establishes a new standard for cardiac arrest response.

To date, this Program has successfully saved numerous lives across the country, demonstrating the critical importance of timely defibrillation delivered by nearby trained volunteers. By connecting 911 telecommunicators with dispatch systems, the program activates bystander care and ensures defibrillator pads are applied to patients before EMS arrives. Each life saved reinforces the vital need to expand and support this program within communities.

"The 4 Minute Community Program represents a new era in cardiac emergency response, and Northside Hospital Forsyth is proud to collaborate with Avive and our local partners to bring this life-saving innovation to our community." Lynn Jackson (CEO Northside Hospital-Forsyth)

"This remarkable save in Forsyth County powerfully illustrates the future of emergency response - one where people use technology to get the right information to the right people at the right time," said Karin Marquez (Chief Public Safety Brand Officer, RapidSOS). "By instantly connecting 911 professionals with precise caller location, the nearest available Avive AED, and the trained citizen volunteer, RapidSOS was the vital technology bridge that ensured this life-saving intervention happened in time. This is a testament to how seamless data sharing between technology and public safety saves lives."

Honoring Heroes: Forsyth County Celebrates Life-Saving Rescue with Awards Ceremony

The November 14, 2025 awards ceremony at 5:30pm at the Cumming Recreation Center in Cumming, GA will celebrate this life-saving rescue and aims to raise awareness about the importance of rapid response and widespread AED access in every community. Program leaders and local officials will speak about the impact of the Cumberland 4 Minute Community initiative and the potential it has to serve as a national model for improving cardiac arrest survival rates. The survivor, CARE team member, and all those along the chain of survival will be honored and acknowledged. We are proud to celebrate Forsyth and excited to continue to support their efforts in community safety and emergency response.

"We're thrilled to celebrate this incredible outcome and everyone who played a role in it at the upcoming ceremony." says Sameer Jafri (CEO and Co-Founder Avive Solutions) "This milestone in Forsyth County and for the entire 4 Minute Community Program proves what's possible when leadership and local community commitment unites behind one goal. We're proud that our technology and this Program played a part in this lifesaving story, and look forward to continuing to support Forsyth's efforts to create many more lifesaving stories for families across their community."

About Avive Solutions, Inc.:
Avive Solutions, Inc. is a Brisbane, CA-based company dedicated to developing state-of-the-art Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) designed to be accessible, intuitive, and effective in saving lives during Sudden Cardiac Arrest emergencies. Avive's mission is to ensure that lifesaving AED technology is available in every community across the nation. Learn more at https://avive.life.

About Northside Hospital:
The Northside Hospital health care system is one of Georgia's leading health care providers with five acute-care hospitals in Atlanta, Canton, Cumming, Duluth and Lawrenceville and nearly 500 outpatient locations across the state. Northside Hospital leads the U.S. in newborn deliveries and is among the state's top providers of cancer care, sports medicine, cardiovascular and surgical services. For more information, visit northside.com.

About RapidSOS

RapidSOS is the technology company that unlocks mission-critical intelligence for emergency response. It harnesses artificial and human intelligence to fuse life-saving data from 600M connected devices, apps, and sensors from 210+ global technology companies to over 22,000+ public safety agencies in 11 countries. Whether there's an unsafe moment or an emergency, RapidSOS Ready devices, vehicles, homes, or buildings deliver essential data to the right place when it matters most. Learn more at www.RapidSOS.com.

Media Contacts:

Katerina Miras
Avive Solutions
[email protected]

Katherine Watson
Northside Hospital
[email protected]

Loren Bolton
RapidSOS
[email protected]

For more information, visitavive.life, northside.com, RapidSOS.com.

SOURCE Avive Solutions, Inc.