[Durham INC] Durham's CPR/AED Initiative Wins International Award

[Blalock, Amy]

CITY OF DURHAM

Office of Public Affairs

101 City Hall Plaza

Durham, NC 27701

 

 

News Release

 

News Media Contact:

Amy Blalock

Sr. Public Affairs Specialist

(919) 560-4123 x 11253

(919) 475-7735 (cell)

Amy.Blalock at DurhamNC.gov 

http://Facebook.com/CityofDurhamNC 

http://Twitter.com/CityofDurhamNC    

 

For Immediate Release: March 19, 2013

 

 

Durham's CPR/AED Initiative Wins International Award

"A Heartbeat Away" Earns Alliance for Innovation's 2013 Award for
Excellence in Local Government

 

DURHAM, N.C. - Durham's life-saving efforts to train thousands of City
and County employees as well as public high school students has received
international accolades.

 

Durham's "A Heartbeat Away" Initiative has been selected as the winner
of the Alliance for Innovation's 2013 Award for Excellence in Local
Government.  The City of Durham, Durham County Government, and Durham
Public Schools have partnered to create this one-of-a-kind CPR/AED
Initiative to help improve the survival rates of sudden cardiac arrest
victims by training local government employees and public high school
students in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external
defibrillator (AED) education as well as bystander hands-only CPR.

 

According to Durham County Emergency Medical Services, in 2011 only 8
percent of cardiac arrest victims in Durham received life-saving CPR
prior to the arrival of first responders, making Durham's survival rate
one of the lowest in the country. It was this alarming statistic that
created this unique partnership - the only of its kind in North
Carolina. "The joint initiative supports both the City's and the
County's strategic plan efforts to improve the health and safety of
Durham residents while also addressing a state mandate that requires all
publicly educated students to be trained in CPR before receiving their
diplomas starting in 2015," said Jay Reinstein, strategic initiatives
manager with the City's Budget & Management Services Department. "It's
one of several initiatives that we are working on together for a better
Durham."

 

According Karen Thoreson, president and chief operating officer of the
Alliance for Innovation, Durham was chosen from more than 70 applicants
from across the United States and Canada for its innovative approach.
"The Selection Committee looks for those local governments that have
shown their dedication to stretching and improving the boundaries of
day-to-day government operations and practices, implementing creative
business processes, and those who have improved the civic health of
their community," wrote Thoreson in a letter notifying the City of
Durham of its award. Durham will receive its award at next month's 2013
Transforming Local Government Conference. For more information about the
conference, visit http://www.tlgconference.org.

 

For more information about the "A Heartbeat Away" Initiative, visit 
http://www.DurhamNC.gov/StrategicPlan/Goals or contact Reinstein at
(919) 560-4111, ext. 20102 or by email at Jay.Reinstein at DurhamNC.gov.

 

About the Budget & Management Services Department

The City of Durham's Budget and Management Services Department is
responsible for preparing, implementing, and monitoring the City's
annual operating budget as well as the five-year revenue/expenditure
projections for all City government services. The department also
provides operational and organizational studies as identified by the
City Council, City Manager's Office, and department staff. Guided by the
City's Strategic Plan, which the department established and maintains,
the department helps to ensure that the City of Durham is a well-managed
city by working with City agencies to build and implement performance
measurement monitoring and evaluation. The department is also
responsible for preparing the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP),
coordinating the City's process for petition and City-initiated
annexations, conducting resident satisfaction surveys, and evaluating
departmental achievement of City goals and objectives. For more
information, visit http://DurhamNC.gov/ich/as/bms/Pages/Home.aspx. 

 

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