RICHMOND, Va. -- Tuesday morning on the 14th floor of the general assembly building, 7-year-old Cayden Shipley addressed a crowd in the in the Senate Speaker room asking the tough questions.
“If my heart were to stop beating right now, ask yourself, would you be able to save me?," Cayden asked. “I know hands-only CPR do you? If you had a chance to save someone’s life wouldn’t you?”
Cayden asked these questions because he's a walking example of how a heart defect can impact a child's life, undergoing open heart surgery when he was just four days old.
“I was born with a severely underdeveloped left ventricle, a heart defect called hypoplastic left heart syndrome,” Cayden said. "When I was four or five, I had surgery again and it was tough. I stayed in the hospital for 10 days."
Cayden has had three total open-heart surgeries and on CPR Awareness Day the 7-year-old hero ambassador is teamed up with the American Heart Association to ensure more people develop critical skills that could save a life.
The AHA is pushing for Senate Bill 181 to become law. It's legislation that would require all schools to develop a Cardiac Emergency Response Plan or CERP.
According to the AHA, CERP is a written document that establishes specific steps to reduce death from cardiac arrest which can be standalone guidelines or merged with a school's existing medical emergency response plans. Teams would then be trained on how to execute those plans.
Democratic State Senator Aaron Rouse championed the bill as the next critical step to protect students, faculty, and staff in Virginia Public Schools since a bill was passed last year that put AEDs in every public school building in the Commonwealth.
"With over 1.2 million students enrolled in Virginia public schools as well as 400,000 faculty and staff, working at Virginia school buildings at any time, it is critically important for each school facility to have a plan in place to address cardiac emergencies and provide critical care when seconds matter," Rouse said.
Encompass Health Medical Director and the Ambassador for the AHA's Giving Society Emily Robins says that when someone suffers a cardiac emergency and help is not administered immediately, there is a precipitous drop in the chances of recovery.
They say CERP in essence is just as critical as any other emergency drill executed in a school building.
“A person's chances of survival while waiting for services during a cardiac emergency decreases by 10% every minute without action, Robbins said. "Every school would have almost like a drill knowing where the AED is what to do where to apply it, what needs to happen during a cardiac arrest before EMS arrive.
The National Football League was also present during Tuesday's press conference.
Kenneth Edmonds who serves as the NFL's President of Public Policy and Government Affairs said since the broadcast of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin's sudden cardiac arrest in 2023, the NFL has partnered with the AHA to create the Smart Heart Sports Coalition to ensure the heart health of athletes of every level is taken seriously so that cardiac emergencies don't end in tragedy.
Edmonds says in addition to CERP he wants to see Emergency Athletic Plans implemented in schools across the country specifically tailored to each and every athletic venue, and for the EAPs to be updated and rehearsed annually in addition to greater access to AEDs and CPR and AED training for coaches.
According to the AHA, in schools with AEDs, approximately 70% of children survive cardiac arrest which is seven times the overall survival rate of children.
"If adopted these basic interconnected elements would save the lives of student-athletes and others who may experience a sudden cardiac arrest," Edmonds said.
Also in attendance was Henrico native, NFL analyst and former Seattle Seahawks Fullback Michael Robinson. He also threw his weight behind the SB-181 saying every school needs a winning game plan when it comes to dealing with cardiac emergencies.
"These requirements are indispensable yet interconnected ensuring that coaches school nurses, athletic trainers, and other first responders can be first responders with the know-how, practice, and confidence to swing into action immediately if a student-athlete or others experience a sudden cardiac arrest, Robinson said."
As SB-181 makes its way to the House of Delegates, the AHA with the help of The NFL and heroes like Cayden vow to keep spreading CPR and heart defect awareness without missing a beat.
“I’m asking for your support so that every school can have a plan. We’re all in this together from the bottom of my heart," Cayden said.
Rouse says SB-181 is a bi-partisan effort that recently passed the Virginia Senate. He said he also expects it to pass in the House without opposition.
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