MILWAUKEE -- Seconds matter in sudden cardiac arrest. TODAY'S TMJ4 consumer investigator Kristin Byrne wanted to know how many people would jump in to help in an emergency.
She went to the Milwaukee Public Market along with a Milwaukee firefighter, an automated external defibrillator or AED, and a mannequin.
When Kristin yelled, "AED! AED!" a woman named Carla jumped in immediately to begin putting the AED pads on the mannequin.
"She asked for help," Carla said. "I didn't want to interfere, but you asked for help."
Kristen asked if she had done this before and Carla said she had as she is a nurse.
Others walking by offered to help but struggled with how to use the AED. In fact, out of the four people who tried the life-saving device, two acted fast. The other two seemed overwhelmed.
But they did try. Data from the American Heart Association shows 46 percent of people who have a cardiac arrest out of the hospital receive immediate help. That means 54 percent do not.
"Often times we pull up on a scene half the time everybody is standing around doing nothing, and the other half of the time there are people doing compressions," said Lieutenant Michael Ball of the Milwaukee Fire Department.
First responders say, when someone goes into cardiac arrest, immediately call 911 and then start CPR with hard and fast compressions.
If there is an AED around, put it to use. Many have easy-to-use instructions.
