Cardiac arrests are a serious issue that has caused an increasing astronomical amount of deaths every year. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, About 695,000 people in the United States died from heart disease in 2021—that’s 1 in every 5 deaths. One person dies every 33 seconds in the United States from cardiovascular disease, many of them being Asian American, due to multiple things, including but not limited to the bystander effect, lack of knowledge of CPR, and a lack of confidence in their ability to perform CPR.
Cardiac disease is the most common cause of death in the industrial world. Over 350,000 men and women per year in the US will have an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Their survival rate is directly related to whether or not there is someone nearby who can perform CPR. The percentage of people that know how to perform CPR varies from state to state and from city to city with Seattle being recognized as having the highest rate of CPR-certified citizens. Although still high, cardiac death rates had been slowly falling for many years but have unfortunately risen during the COVID era. Years ago the American Heart Association initiated a “war” against sudden cardiac death that is centered on massive CPR training. One of the primary (and most successful components of the program) has been championing CPR training in local high schools. This alone has contributed to a decline in cardiac deaths. Another breakthrough has been attained by a strong recommendation that portable cardiac defibrillators become available in gyms, stadiums, schools, and large buildings. It should be noted that when questioned most survivors of a cardiac arrest recall having new onset chest pain (more in men), shortness of breath (women), or palpitations.
According to Mayo Clinic, cardiac arrest is defined as a sudden loss of heart activity due to an irregular heart rhythm. Symptoms include a loss of breathing, sudden passing out, and unconsciousness of a person. Normally, if a person is in a hospital, emergency treatment such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation, better known as CPR, and/or a shock to the heart with a device called an automated external defibrillator (AED). Although many people tend to survive when they go into cardiac arrest in the hospital, according to the American Heart Association, 90% of people who go into cardiac arrest do not survive, particularly within the Asian American Community.
Within the Asian American community, there is a clear emphasis on non-Western medicine and methods. For example, in Chinese culture, many will use Chinese herbs and traditional medicines, as well as methods such as acupuncture, where certain parts of the body have heavy pressure put on them in order to treat illnesses or feelings of pain. In addition, things like making soup or drinking hot liquids are very prominent in Asian culture to help others heal themselves in situations like having a cold or the flu. Since there is so much emphasis on traditional medicines, oftentimes, Asian Americans will not learn many ways of treatment beyond their traditional way of teaching. Due to unfamiliarity with Western medicine, according to an analysis of nearly 279,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests done by the American Heart Association, Asian Americans are 8% less likely to survive hospital discharge and 15% less likely to have favorable neurological outcomes compared to white adults.
In addition, some of the traditional methods focus more on less severe things like the flu or getting a cold. So when more severe things like cardiac arrest come up, it is very difficult for them to have the proper training to deal with situations such as that. In times of cardiac arrest. It is important to call local police, and then start CPR. According to the American Red Cross, after placing the victim flat on the ground, one should give 30 chest compressions with two hands centered on the chest, the body position being where the shoulders are directly over the hands; elbows locked in-depth and the heart rate is around 100 to 120 per minute. After the compressions, it is important to allow the chest to return to normal position after each compression followed by 2 breaths where the body continues to be flat where the nose should have an open airway and a past-neutral position using the head-tilt/chin-lift technique. Additionally, they should pinch the nose shut, take a normal breath, and make a complete seal over the person’s mouth with your mouth. It is also important to ensure that each breath lasts about 1 second and makes the chest rise; allow air to exit before giving the next breath. It is important to continue this cycle until there is either a response or the arrival of professionals.
Since many Asian Americans are not knowledgeable about CPR, many will fall victim to the “bystander effect”, where during times of cardiac arrest, they will stand by and not attempt to help the victim. They believe that they are underqualified, despite knowing the general gist of how CPR should look like.
Sampan asked MA residents about their knowledge of cardiac arrest and CPR. Liang Wu, a 45-year-old Chinese Boston immigrant told Sampan, “ I have seen CPR done on things like TV shows; however, I have never seen anyone go into cardiac arrest, nor have I had the training or confidence to do CPR if someone does go into cardiac arrest.” Like many other minority Asian Americans, Wu believes that she cannot perform any sort of CPR because she is not CPR-certified. Although it is preferable to be CPR certified in order to do CPR, when someone is in cardiac arrest, it is essential that someone helps try to revive the person going into cardiac arrest. Even being exposed to things like seeing people do it in TV shows or described in movies is enough to at least attempt to do CPR after calling professionals for help. Oftentimes, the professionals might not be able to get there to resuscitate the person on time, and even trying to imitate the CPR procedures seen on the internet has the possibility to be enabled to help with CPR. This leads to much lower rates of survival within the Asian American population, killing 20% more Asian Americans compared to their white counterparts.
The bystander rate among Asian Americans is incredibly high, causing there to be a considerable amount of deaths due to cardiac arrest. However, there are many ways of being able to combat this issue. The American Heart Association is trying to spread the word about CPR to Asian Americans by going to local hospitals. For people interested in getting CPR certified, the American Red Cross has a lot of potential training opportunities for people to get CPR certified. At the Red Cross, there is specific Boston training that can easily adapt to one’s schedule. Classes can be taken entirely in person, or with the blended Simulation Learning experience that is a combo of online coursework with a hands-on skills session on their website https://www.redcross.org/take-a-class. They are both convenient options that allow basic CPR training that not only lasts 2 years but gives an important foundation for people to help in case of an emergency. In addition, Boston-specific websites such as CPR Boston https://cprboston.org/, or call 617-298-0699 to schedule a quick and affordable training.
Deeb N. Salem, MD offered :
Cardiac disease is the most common cause of death in the industrial world. Over 350,000 men and women per year in the US will have an out of hospital cardiac arrest. Their survival rate is directly related to whether or not there is someone nearby that can perform CPR. The percentage of people that know how to perform CPR varies from state to state and from city to city with Seattle being recognized as having the highest rate of CPR certified citizens. Although still high, cardiac death rates had been slowly falling for many years but have unfortunately risen during the COVID era. Years ago the American Heart Association initiated a “war” against sudden cardiac death that is centered on massive CPR training. One of the primary (and most successful components of the program) has been championing CPR training in local high schools. This alone has contributed to a decline in cardiac deaths. Another breakthrough has been attained by a strong recommendation that portable cardiac defibrillators become available in gyms, stadiums, schools and large buildings. It should be noted that when questioned most survivors of a cardiac arrest recall having new onset chest pain (more in men), or shortness of breath (women) or palpitations.
Deeb N. Salem, MD, Senior VP of Academic Integration Tufts Medicine
Professor of Medicine,Tufts University School of Medicine
Chairman of Medicine Emeritus, Tufts Medical Center
John McNamara, a recent heart attack survivor advised:
I recommend all employers to train their employees in CPR. Further, it would be a great practice for employers to purchase a defibrillator and train the employees as well. Lastly, if you even suspect that you are having a heart attack, seek medical attention immediately. Time equals tissue… the sooner the doctors can address the issues, the less damage to your heart.
