'Training people is my passion,' says CPR trainer Michael Barnett
Published:Saturday | March 19, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Carl Gilchrist, Gleaner Writer
IMAGINE AN accident scene, far from a medical facility and with no emergency assistance in sight. The injured is lying unconscious on the ground, not breathing. There is uncertainty over his condition. Fear and confusion grip everyone around. Then, one person steps forward and begins to administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). He succeeds in reviving the injured, who was later taken to a hospital where he eventually recovers full health.
Such a life-saving situation is what Michael Barnett has been preparing persons for over the past eight years.
Since 2003, Barnett, a lecturer and trained medical technician/phlebotomist with St John Ambulance in Prospect, Ocho Rios, has been training persons in CPR and, by his estimation, has trained thousands since then.
"I've been doing it from 2003 but was duly assigned to St John Ambulance two years ago. Training people is my life, my passion!" Barnett declared.
early beginnings
Barnett became "medically inclined" when he was young, and years later, when he entered practical nursing school, he was exposed to the procedure. Having qualified as a medical technician he later started training others in the vital technique of CPR.
His trainees have included correctional officers, security guards, nurses, students, hotel staff among others.
Training has taken place at St John Ambulance headquarters in Prospect, at schools, hotels and workplaces.
Recently, The Gleaner caught up with him while he was training a batch of 23 security guards who were taken through the 16 hours of training at the St John headquarters.
"They are trained to recognise an incident of emergency, the hazards and dangers that surround the incident and the individuals, and how to navigate their way through the corrective methods," Barnett explained. "Having identified these conditions, they then apply the kind of care that each condition requires."
The administration of CPR, and how to deal with injured persons generally, is an important procedure that could determine whether an injured person lives or dies.
"The importance is hinged mainly on the ignorance of society at large, in that there are simple procedures that have to be managed well by people at the scene of an emergency," said Barnett. "For example, at an accident scene the way you remove the injured could mean the difference between life and death. People generally don't know how to deal with accidents so my approach is basically to enlighten people on how to manage and manage professionally," he added.
What is CPR?
CPR is an emergency procedure which is done in an effort to revive persons in cardiac arrest (the stopping of normal blood circulation due to failure of the heart). This situation is indicated in persons who are unresponsive and are not breathing or only gasping.
CPR involves chest compression at a rate of at least 100 per minute in an effort to create artificial blood circulation. In addition, mouth-to-mouth resuscitation may be done, that is, exhaling (blowing) into the mouth in order get air into the lungs.