Heartline Magazine July-September 2003 Police get Heartsaver AED Training Sixty members of the Royal Barbados Police Force, comprising officers of the Task Force and other elite divisions recently began training in Heartsaver AED at the Heart Foundation of Barbados. This training affords these officers the skills and knowledge to manage the vital few minutes of heart attack and cardiac arrest. Other key components of the course include relief of foreign body airway obstruction (choking), and the use of the Automated External Defibrillator (AED). Essentially, the course emphasizes the chain of survival. Ventricular fibrillation, the most common cause of sudden cardiac arrest, can be successfully treated by applying an electric shock to the chest with a procedure called defibrillation. Certification in AED provides these officers the expertise to conduct defibrillation with an AED, should one be available. The training was coordinated by ACP Gabriel, Superintendent Nicholls, Inspector Murray, and the ECC Committee of the HFOB. Training in Heartsaver AED complements the first aid training that these officers have already received, equipping them with the capability to perform adequately as first re­spondents, not only to emergencies of a civic nature but also to initially manage medical emergencies in the work environ­ment and within the public domain alike.   Home | About Us | Contact Us | CDP&R | ECC | Our Partners | Heartline | Become a Member | Become a Volunteer | Heart Disease | Stroke | Medication | Mission Statement | Aims & Objectives