By Thomas Mott | Reporter
Baylor students and Waco residents are encouraged to stop by and learn how to save lives from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Baylor Science Building (BSB) fields.
Volunteers for the Texas Two Step CPR: Save a Life Campaign 2017 will be in Waco to help raise awareness and show people how to save lives using a simple two-step CPR process.
“We are not CPR certifying anyone, but it’s more raising awareness for how to deal with an emergency situation,” said Bellaire sophomore Lauren Graham.
The program was recently expanded to include more areas of Texas so more people can be trained, Graham said.
“Last year, it was only medical schools in Texas who had an emergency medical program,” Graham said. “We thought Waco would be a good location for it since we have Baylor University here and the huge pre-med, pre-health program.”
According to the Texas Two Step website, the two step process is first: “Call 911” and second: “Begin hands-only CPR by pushing hard and fast on the center of the chest.” However, Mesquite senior Victoria Ette said she hopes people walk away with more than just CPR training.
“We are hoping that people will learn hands-only CPR and actually implement that in their brain and remember it. I hope people will take an interest in their health. I hope people get some type of further education about health issues,” Ette said.
The purpose of this course is simple-saving lives-and according to the Texas Two Step website, doing so is easier than one may think.
“The purpose of the Texas Two Step Hands Only CPR campaign is intended to save lives by teaching this simple but critical life-saving technique. Knowledge of this basic technique has been shown to save lives, but more advanced techniques are possible.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, every year about 735,000 Americans have heart attacks. Of these, 525,000 of the people are first time victims. 210,000 people are second-time victims.
The American Heart Association reports that “46 percent of people who experience an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest get the immediate help that they need before professional help arrives.”
The Texas Two Step class is free. All one has to do is show up to the BSB fields between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to learn how to save a life.
“There are a lot of statistics that the majority of people in an emergency situation don’t know what to do and either they will assume that someone else will call 911 or they will kind of avoid the situation. This is a great place to gain confidence, and you can save lives by learning these two simple steps,” Graham said.
For more information, visit www.tx2step.com.
