OTC helps bring AED to Crosslines

With more than 51,000 people using Crosslines every year, the Springfield charity organization never knows when a serious medical issue like a heart attack could arise among their clients.

Now, thanks to OTC, their concerns are greatly eased.

On Sept. 8, Crosslines, which helps families in the crisis situations, will receive an arterial defibrillator and its staff will undergo AED/CPR training.

“Crosslines is so grateful for the donation of the AED from OTC,” said Tom Faulkner, director of Crosslines. “By having the AED and all of our staff trained in its use, we now know that if a medical emergency occurs, we have the knowledge and a valuable tool to help us save a life.”

OTC is getting the device – valued at $2,250 – from its supplier, Marelly AEDs and First Aid of Chesterfield, Mo.

“We realize money doesn’t grow on trees. The name of the game is saving lives,” said Chip George, owner of Marelly’s and a graduate of Missouri State University (then known as SMS). “Instead of putting Crosslines in a situation of  ‘what if,’ now they can say, ‘We did everything we could.'”

“Crosslines contacted us when they had the need for an AED but couldn’t afford one,” said Beth Perkins, coordinator of OTC’s AED Solutions program. “When Chip brought up the idea of donating one, we thought we’d go ahead and give it to Crosslines.”

OTC’s AED Solutions program is a component of the OTC Allied Health department and assists businesses, organizations and citizens who want to develop or implement an AED program.

Perkins said a lot of groups and organizations need an AED but may not realize it, including churches, parks and recreation groups, fitness centers, dental offices and health spas.

The new AED devices are very simple to operate and take very little time to explain how to use them. The CPR training takes more time and is taught hand-in-hand with the AED training.

“Anyone can use the AED, but a lot of people think the fire department is super close when there’s an incident,” Perkins said. “In the 5-7 minutes it takes for the fire department to get there, using the AED could already have saved a life.”

In addition to giving the training, OT’C’s AED Solutions also keeps a registry of all AEDs in Springfield. There is no fee for registering and the list allows Perkins to contact the owners of the devices when there is a recall or other issue with their AED.

Perkins can be contact at 417-447-8952 or perkinsb@otc.edu.