ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. -- When it comes to saving lives, seconds count.
Having life-saving knowledge and the tools at hand is essential for success in the business of being a first responder. None understand this more than the crew at Arnold Air Force Base Fire and Emergency Services, or FES. The department was recently awarded with two LUCAS 3 Chest Compression Systems with funding provided by the AEDC Spark Tank program.
The Spark Tank, which was open to military, DOD civilians and contractors across all AEDC units, allowed members of the AEDC workforce to propose suggestions for improving AEDC processes, products and test capabilities. Those awarded funding were notified earlier this year.
The LUCAS 3 is designed to deliver uninterrupted chest compressions at a consistent rate and depth, whether in the field, during transport and throughout arrival to the hospital.
According to Stephen McCluskey, a firefighter and paramedic for Arnold FES, the new devices allow first responders to provide the best care possible during the rescue process.
“The key thing in advanced cardiac-life support is early recognition, early defibrillation and high-quality CPR,” he explained. “We’ve always been good at recognition along with defibrillation and shocking, but what we’ve not been the best at is good continuous and quality CPR. Historically, we have used firefighters and other first responders as a machine of sorts. Performing continuous CPR can be extremely exhausting. Anytime you have to stop CPR, you are having to start over again and it takes six to 10 compressions to build back up to where you were. By using the LUCAS, we are able to do CPR compressions non-stop while transporting them from home to the hospital along with treating them on the way.”
McCuskey said that just on a single battery alone, the machine can perform continuous compressions for 45 minutes. The department is also equipped with additional batteries allowing for hours of extended compression time if needed.
He added that the machine improves blood flow to the brain which improves chances of survival and function of the brain.
“Your chest is a negative-pressure environment,” McCluskey said. “When you’re doing compressions and you press down, it is actually pushing the blood out to the body. When the chest recoils it sucks the blood back to the heart and that’s where the oxygenation occurs. By using this system, the process is nonstop. Oxygen is able to get to the brain and we can get the patient back without a neurological deficit. Hospitals are also getting these, which is great because with this system we can continue CPR when we arrive on site. We can simply detach the machine from the board the patient is lying on and the hospital can snap theirs into place. These models are interchangeable with each other.”
Also a fulltime firefighter and paramedic with Cannon County, McCluskey said he has seen first-hand the life-saving capabilities of LUCAS 3.
“While we have just received the devices here, I’ve been working with them for a few years now,” he said. “I’ve been using a LUCAS for two years now and I’ve not lost a cardiac arrest patient yet. The device is worth its weight in gold.”
Initially, only requesting a single device, the department was awarded with two that will enable two devices to be available when needed. Each member of the department has also been trained to properly operate the device.
McCluskey said he is proud to be able to offer such a benefit to the complex as well as the community.
“I’m excited for us to have this technology to benefit those we treat,” he said. “This machine will benefit everyone here on the base and Coffee and Franklin counties as a whole. We do mutual aid with Coffee County and, actually, we are the only agency in Coffee County that has a chest compression device, except for the hospital. This machine saves lives. It’s not me, the paramedic that saves the life, it’s not my knowledge; it’s the skills of doing the CPR.”