IMA doctors observed 1 minute silence on the sudden demise of Dr APJ Kalam

IMA doctors observed 1 minute silence on the sudden demise of Dr APJ Kalam

All members of IMA observed a minute of silence at 12 noon today on the sudden demise of Former President of India and Bharat Ratna Awardee, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam.

In their condolence message, Padma Shri Awardee Dr A Marthanda Pillai, National President, Indian Medical Association (IMA) and Padma Shri Awardee Dr K K Aggarwal, Hony Secretary General, IMA in a joint statement said that the best tribute that can be paid to Late Dr Abdul Kalam is to make it mandatory for all public places and public functions to be equipped with Automated External Defibrillators (AED).

Currently, Heart Care Foundation of India (HCFI) jointly with IMA and Delhi ed Cross Society is engaged in training the staff of PCR vans in basic hands-on CPR 10, with the aim of training 100% staff of PCR vans in this lifesaving technique.

Dr Aggarwal said that in all public places and public functions all the staff deployed must know the techniques of basic CPR.

A witnessed cardiac arrest is different from unwitnessed cardiac arrest. Chances of survival are much higher in a witnessed cardiac arrest, if basic hands-only CPR is done by the bystanders immediately at the very onset of cardiac arrest. Chances of survival further increase, if electric shock is also given by using AED machines.

In India, deaths from sudden cardiac arrest are more in number than combined deaths from diabetes, road traffic accidents and dementia.

HCFI and IMA have jointly written to the Hon’ble President of India and Hon’ble Prime Minister with a copy to the Hon’ble Health Minister and Hon’ble Law Minister to enact a law in India on the lines of laws in the United States making it mandatory to train people in “Hands-only CPR” and installing AEDs in public places and public functions.

Dr. Aggarwal also said that India needs Good Samaritan laws, which allow lay persons to learn and perform hands-only CPR and use AED machines to prevent sudden deaths due to cardiac arrest like what happened in Shillong. All over the world, under Good Samaritan law, limited immunity is provided to lay persons while resuscitating any case of witnessed or unwitnessed cardiac arrest. In US, the law is called “Community Access to Emergency Devices Act”. 

In addition to making AEDs handy in public places, IMA also recommends conventional defibrillators in every healthcare setting.

In the US, it is compulsory to deploy an AED device in all commercial malls, airports, railway stations, casinos, religious places, cinema halls etc. in addition to all medical settings.