Study Looks to Place AEDs in Private, Commercial Buildings

April 2, 2001
The Building Owners and Managers\r\nAssociation (BOMA) International, has begun a six-month research\r\neffort into placing ADEs in private, commercial\r\nbuildings.

A year after Congress passed legislation requiring the General Services Administration (GSA), the nation''s largest owner and lessor of office space, to stock its public buildings with Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International, has begun a six-month research effort into placing these devices in private, commercial buildings.

In addition to GSA, some states and localities already require the presence of AEDs in public buildings

An AED is designed to deliver an electric shock to the heart of a person suffering a heart attack. The shock helps the heart regain a regular beat. To work, the operator attaches the machine to the victim and the machine determines if the victim''s heart would benefit from a shock. An operator does not need a medical background, but is required to be trained on how to use the machine.

Because the machine determines if the victim''s heart needs to be shocked, the operator may hook the machine to a person he or she suspects of possibly suffering from a heart attack without endangering the victim''s heath. The machine will not deliver a shock unless the victim is in cardiac arrest.

"As we investigate this issue, we will not only look for the opportunity to develop education programs on the proper use of AEDs, but we will push for Good Samaritan legislation to provide liability protection for building personnel and other individuals using the equipment," said BOMA president Richard Baier, managing director of CB Richard Ellis in Kansas City, Mo. "Without the proper specter of a lawsuit should the equipment fail, we believe more building personnel would be willing to get the training, have the devices onsite and would jump in and try to save someone in a cardiac emergency."

Preliminary recommendations will be made at the association''s annual convention in Baltimore June 17-19.

During the six-month research period, however, BOMA is seeking partners for research, education and training. Interested parties should contact Marco Giamberardino, director of codes and standards for BOMA, at (202) 326-6356 or at [email protected] .

by Melissa Martin

About the Author

EHS Today Staff

EHS Today's editorial staff includes:

Dave Blanchard, Editor-in-Chief: During his career Dave has led the editorial management of many of Endeavor Business Media's best-known brands, including IndustryWeekEHS Today, Material Handling & LogisticsLogistics Today, Supply Chain Technology News, and Business Finance. In addition, he serves as senior content director of the annual Safety Leadership Conference. With over 30 years of B2B media experience, Dave literally wrote the book on supply chain management, Supply Chain Management Best Practices (John Wiley & Sons, 2021), which has been translated into several languages and is currently in its third edition. He is a frequent speaker and moderator at major trade shows and conferences, and has won numerous awards for writing and editing. He is a voting member of the jury of the Logistics Hall of Fame, and is a graduate of Northern Illinois University.

Adrienne Selko, Senior Editor: In addition to her roles with EHS Today and the Safety Leadership Conference, Adrienne is also a senior editor at IndustryWeek and has written about many topics, with her current focus on workforce development strategies. She is also a senior editor at Material Handling & Logistics. Previously she was in corporate communications at a medical manufacturing company as well as a large regional bank. She is the author of Do I Have to Wear Garlic Around My Neck?, which made the Cleveland Plain Dealer's best sellers list.

Nicole Stempak, Managing Editor:  Nicole Stempak is managing editor of EHS Today and conference content manager of the Safety Leadership Conference.

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