News : North Benton Ambulance breakfast raises funds for LUCAS CPR device

The new North Benton Ambulance is parked in front of the new VSHS sign Sunday during fund-raiser.

The new North Benton Ambulance unit was on display during the pancake breakfast fund-raiser.

Tony Thompson demonstrates how a LUCAS device helps save a life after heart attack.

While CPR is a proven life-saver after a cardiac event, the difficulty that a rescuer faces when trying to maintain a constant pressure and rhythm to a heart attack victim often makes CPR less helpful.

To improve the odds of saving heart attack victims, the North Benton Ambulance Service has obtained one LUCAS CPR device, and is raising funds to purchase another.

The LUCAS device was on display Sunday morning at Vinton-Shellsburg High School, where the ambulance service was holding a pancake breakfast to raise funds for the device.

With such a machine, said Tony Thompson, chances of survival after a heart attack can increase up to 30 percent over conventional CPR. The reason for the difference is that the LUCAS device provides consistent pressure and a consistent rhythm of 100 beats per minute. That allows blood flow to continue while rescuers provide initial care. Thompson adds that the machine is most effective when it is applied right away after a cardiac event.

The LUCAS device also includes an external defibrillator and an extensive heart monitoring system. The ambulance service is working with Mercy Hospital in Cedar Rapids on a system that allows the sending of a patient's heart rhythm information to the hospital electronically. Discussions with Virginia Gay Hospital are also under way to see how information could be sent to doctors there.

The LUCAS device costs approximately $13,000 while the heart monitoring and defib device is approximately $35,000.

The service also had its brand new ambulance on display during the breakfast.