Fort Riley Fire and Emergency Services staff provide a class for CPR and AED training monthly for several groups associated with the installation.
“The class is for all Garrison employees, DOD, civilians, Soldiers, their spouses, and then DOD civilian spouses or family members as space is allowed,” said Jason Demars, assistant chief of health and safety for the Directorate of Emergency Services at Fort Riley.
Demars explained that DES now has five instructors available to teach the American Heart Association certification class and there are two more who are in the process of being certified to teach. Having more instructors is important as the class has a mandatory student teacher ratio.
“So it's a one to six - six students to one instructor ratio,” Demars said. “Okay, and so right now, I only have five instructors. And they work different shifts.”
Demars said with the training aids available and the number of instructors, the team can comfortably teach 12 students in each class.
The completion of the class satisfies OSHA requirements for those jobs where CPR and AED certification is required.
“There are a lot of positions here on Fort Riley that require CPR certification,” said Marty Coufal, assistant chief of operations for Fort Riley Fire and Emergency Services. “A lot of your DES folks and your physical security guards, your police, us as fire firefighters, childcare providers, IACH and any medical … dental employees. So, there is a wide variety and range of people … the fitness centers, so all their folks … should be certified.”
However, there are still slots available for other beneficiaries who need the certification or who just want to be prepared to act in case of an emergency. In fact, having more people trained across the installation is considered beneficial and even vital by the DES trainers.
“We're deemed first responders,” said Coufal. “But, when it comes to a cardiac event, somebody that is CPR certified is truly the first responder because they're going to be that first person to take action - if they choose … if we do have somebody, a civilian …who is maybe not as fully confident as what they think they should be, if they can attend this class it will boost their confidence and build their confidence up for them. So that way, if a situation does happen, … they will have the courage to act to help save or render aid to that individual.”
To find out about class availability and to register, call the DES team at 785-239-8874.
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