QUEZON CITY, (PIA) -- Barangay San Antonio (BSA) in Pasig City has collaborated with The Medical City in conducting a cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training aimed at helping residents with no medical background to be prepared and knowledgeable in times of heart emergencies.

Like a thief in the night, as the Philippine Heart Association (PHA) defines it, sudden cardiac arrest strikes without warning, leaving relatives of victims with a tremendous psychological and emotional burden.

"This activity, the basic life support training is very important for our residents. BSA has been an advocate of preparedness ever since, disaster preparedness. Being knowledgeable on basic CPR is one of those life-saving aspects that we need to equip our residents with," BSA chairman Raymond Lising said, expressing gratitude to The Medical City for leading the training.

"We are really grateful for this collaboration with The Medical City. This health program will definitely be of great help," Lising added.

Sudden cardiac arrest, according to the PHA, is associated with a low survival rate and major long-term severe mental impairment due to delays in CPR and treatment.

"When someone has a sudden cardiac arrest, his or her survival depends greatly on immediately getting CPR from a bystander. CPR must begin within four to six minutes and advanced life support measures must begin within eight minutes, to avoid brain death," it noted.

About 50 non-medical practitioners attended the training at BSA. These include housekeeping staff in BSA buildings, house helpers, security guards and barangay tanod, among others.

The training includes Basic Life Support (Hands-Only CPR) for the lay, free consultation for heart-related concerns and lay forum on hypertension and lipids.

"They can immediately apply what they learned in the training should a heart emergency arises at work, because we can never really expect when these emergencies will befall. Should someone suffer from cardiac arrest, our people are now well-equipped to be the first responders," Lising stated.

Dr. Adriel Guerrero, head of The Medical City's Cardiovascular Division, emphasized that first responders can make a big difference in saving a patient's life.

"Should someone suffer from cardiac arrest here in the barangay, there's a bigger chance now for that person to survive, because of CPR," Guerrero said.

After the activity, the participants received a certificate to prove that they underwent actual CPR training from The Medical City's experts.

Meanwhile, Lising felt elated upon finding out that one of the doctors during the training is a BSA resident.

"We're really happy also that one of the doctors helping us today from The Medical City. This only shows how our residents are actively helping us in making our community better," he said. (PIA-NCR)