Hands-Only CPR Training

Take a few minutes out of your day on June 6 and learn how to save a life.

Staff from the University of Iowa Health Care Emergency Medical Services Learning Resources Center (EMSLRC) will be providing hands-only CPR training on the east side of the Pentacrest on the UI campus. If it rains, the event will relocate to the second floor of the Old Capitol Town Center.

Sudden cardiac arrest is the third leading cause of death in the United States, with more than 350,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occurring every year. CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, can triple the chances of survival, especially if performed immediately. However, many people don’t know CPR or are not confident that they can do it correctly.

The event, coordinated by UI Health Care EMSLRC and the American Heart Association (AHA), in conjunction with National CPR and AED awareness week (June 1–7), aims to raise awareness of the importance of bystander CPR and increase the number of people who can perform CPR in cardiac arrest emergencies.

EMSLRC staff will use 20 mannequins to train people in hands-only CPR. The two-step technique is simple—call 911, then push hard and fast in the center of the chest until help arrives—and the training takes only a few minutes. Attendees can also learn about AED (automated external defibrillator) devices that deliver an electric shock to restore a normal heart rate and rhythm in a person in cardiac arrest. 

The AHA’s Heart mascot will be at the event.

“We’re pleased to support the American Heart Association and its important mission to increase survival from cardiac arrest,” says Lori Hartley, AHA Training Center coordinator for the Emergency Medical Services Learning Resources Center at UI Hospitals & Clinics. “This is a great opportunity for anyone in our community to take one minute of their day to learn the lifesaving skills of hands-only CPR.” 

This event is part of the Richard E. Kerber HeartSafe Initiative, which aims to train faculty and staff in non-medical buildings in CPR and the use of AEDs. The initiative is also increasing the number and visibility of AEDs on campus. In achieving the initiative’s goals, the UI will meet the standards required to be certified as a “HeartSafe Campus” by the National Collegiate Emergency Medical Services Association.

Launched in 2017, the initiative honors Richard E. Kerber, MD (1939–2016), who was a faculty member of the Division of Cardiology with UI Health Care for over 45 years, and a pioneer in CPR research.