To aid cardiac arrest victims quickly, the Los Angeles County Fire Department, The PulsePoint Foundation and The Wireless Foundation are making the PulsePoint app available to individuals in the Los Angeles County area Wednesday. Aimed at average citizens and off-duty professionals trained in CPR, the app alerts registered users when a sudden cardiac arrest occurs in a public place in their immediate vicinity. Informed at the same time as emergency responders, users are given detailed instructions, including the location of automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) nearby.

More than 13,000 people in Los Angeles County have already downloaded the app, but local promotional campaigns are in development to help raise awareness among the County’s more than 4 million residents.  The leading cause of death in the U.S., cardiac arrests outside hospitals are responsible for more than 1,000 deaths a day and 424,000 a year. Effective CPR administered immediately after a cardiac arrest can potentially double or triple the victim’s chance of survival, but less than half of victims receive that immediate help.

“Widespread deployment of the PulsePoint app can significantly strengthen the Chain of Survival by increasing the chance that lifesaving steps will be taken by CPR-trained individuals prior to the arrival of our personnel,” said Los Angeles County Fire Chief Daryl Osby. “Mobile technology can help us build a safer, more resilient community, and thanks to the donation by The Wireless Foundation, PulsePoint is available to Los Angeles County at no cost to our organization.”

“This is a perfect example of the ‘connected life’ that provides enormous benefits for all thanks to this very simple concept, which is to alert CPR-trained individuals to a nearby cardiac arrest situation so they may assist until the professional responders arrive on the scene,” said Meredith Attwell Baker, President of The Wireless Foundation and President and CEO of CTIA-The Wireless Association. “If you’re CPR-trained, please download the PulsePoint app now to help save a life.”

In addition to the PulsePoint app, the Los Angeles County Fire Department will be launching the PulsePoint AED app to help locate and record all public access defibrillators in the county for use during cardiac arrest emergencies. Once validated, these crowdsourced AED will be visible in the PulsePoint app as well as for dispatcher use during emergency calls. The PulsePoint app and PulsePoint AED apps are available on Android and iOS (Apple).

About the Los Angeles County Fire Department

Founded in 1923, the Los Angeles County Fire Department is an international leader of the fire service, and one of the largest emergency service agencies in the world.  Each day, more than 900 emergency responders are on duty to provide fire protection, life safety and environmental protection services to more than 4 million residents and commercial businesses in Los Angeles County’s 2,296-square-mile area.  When called into action following major disasters, the Department’s Urban Search and Rescue Team responds around the globe as members of California Task Force 2. Once back in Los Angeles County, these same highly-trained responders can be found at work in hometown neighborhoods in 58 cities and unincorporated areas.  The Department proudly continues to be a frontrunner in firefighting technology, offering specialized training opportunities in Urban Search and Rescue, Emergency Medical Services, Hazardous Materials, Air Operations and Homeland Security.  Behind the scenes, more than 800 dedicated business professionals help carry out the mission. Learn more at www.fire.lacounty.gov.

About the PulsePoint Foundation

PulsePoint is a 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Its mission is to make it much easier for citizens who are trained in CPR to use their lifesaving skills to do just that…save lives! Through the use of modern, location-aware mobile devices, PulsePoint is building applications that work with local public safety agencies to improve communications with citizens and empower them to help reduce the millions of annual deaths from sudden cardiac arrest. Deployment of the PulsePoint app can significantly strengthen the “chain of survival” by improving bystander response to sudden cardiac arrest victims in public settings and increasing the chance that lifesaving steps will be taken prior to the arrival of emergency medical services (EMS) professionals. PulsePoint is built and maintained by volunteer engineers at Workday and distributed by Physio-Control. The original idea came from Richard Price, the former chief of the San Ramon Valley Fire Department, who wanted to bridge the gap between the critical minutes following sudden cardiac arrest and the 13 million Americans who are CPR trained, but often don’t know their skills are required. The PulsePoint app is available for iPhone and Android and can be downloaded from the iTunes Store™ and Google Play™. Learn more at www.pulsepoint.org.

About The Wireless Foundation

The Wireless Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to developing and supporting initiatives that use wireless technology to help American communities. The Foundation’s innovative programs benefit consumers in areas such as education, healthcare, safety and the environment. The Foundation was formed by CTIA-The Wireless Association® member companies in 1991. Learn more at www.wirelessfoundation.org.