University of New Haven First College in State to be Designated HeartSafe
The University of New Haven is the first institution of higher education in the state
to be designated as HeartSafe by the Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH),
Medical Services.
June 14, 2017
Taking part in the HeartSAFE Workplace designation ceremony are Paula Cappuccia, Director of Health Services; Ryan M. Hagen, Director of Campus Recreation; Steven Hotchkiss, OEMS; Ronald Quagliani, Associate Vice President for Public Safety and Administrative Services; Christopher Reed, Director of Safety, Training & Fire Marshal
"The University of New Haven has demonstrated its commitment to ensuring that its
employees, students and campus visitors receive the early lifesaving response proven
to increase the chance of survival for heart attack victims."
The designation is part of DPH's Heart Disease & Stroke Prevention Program. The DPH
and the state's Office of Emergency Medical Services in collaboration with the American
Heart Association, aim to help Connecticut's workplaces, cities and towns improve
the chances that anyone suffering sudden cardiac arrest will have the best possible
chance for survival.
The university has worked for several years to achieve this designation. We believe
this is an important part of our overall efforts to ensure the safety of our campus
community.
– Ronald Quagliani, Associate Vice President for Public Safety and Administrative Services
As part of the program, the university has installed 28 defibrillators on the West
Haven campus as well as machines on the Orange, Lyme and Saw Mill campuses, and has
trained more than 140 employees - well above the 10 percent required to achieve the
DPH HeartSafe designation -- to respond when someone has symptoms of a heart attack.
The University offers CPR training for both employees and students every other month
throughout the year.
The program is important, Quagliani said, because each year more than 250,000 Americans
die from sudden cardiac arrest. The key to survival is timely initiation of a "chain
of survival." An Automated External Defibrillator (AED) is used to treat victims who
experience sudden cardiac arrest and/or a heart attack.
The American Heart Association notes that at least 20,000 lives could be saved annually
by prompt use of AEDs.
The program has been run in partnership with the student EMS Club. The program involves
not only training employees in CPR but also offering health education about recognizing
the signs and symptoms of heart attacks and the need to call 9-1-1; controlling high
cholesterol and high blood pressure; and reducing such heart disease risk factors
as tobacco use, diabetes, physical inactivity, stress, and poor nutrition.
