I hosted our club's annual safety clinic last Saturday. A few things were a big hit. One thing scared me quite a bit. The "J" shaped slalom course, set up to teach boat control, was run repeatedly by all present and with great enthusiasm. An even bigger hit was the Across The Cove race. Racers had to paddle across a 75 yard cove paddling only on their right side, bump the beach with their bow, and return backwards paddling on both sides. The grand prize for the race was a Hooters Frisbee. I gift wrapped the prize so no one but me knew what they were competing for. It really caused the competitive spirit to come out strong in the racers. When the gun went off most people shot off at a 45 degree angle to their left. I yelled, "Edge! Edge!" It didnt do a lot of good but later it was a healthy learning point to discuss. One guy did roll successfully three times while coming back. Now the scary bit. We started the day doing voluntary wet exits. Not everyone wanted to play. A couple new to the club (both about 50) were really gung ho and dumped right over. We had her back in quickly and without incident. Now it was the husband's turn. He appeared to be in OK physical condition. Appearances can be deceiving. I tried several different ways to help him back in. He couldnt get any further up on the rear deck than his sternum. We tried about four times, using several different ways to help in back in. He began to breathe shallowly and turned bright pink. My "M.I." radar went off! I tilted the boat completely sideways, had him float in legs first on his belly and rolled him up. He swiveled around and sat up obviously weak and just a bit oblivious to his surroundings like a runner after a very hard race. We paddled the ten yards to shore with a boat on each side of him. I introduced him to "Tom". Tom is the club's general surgeon . The clubs surgical cardiac nurse was called over too. I got back in my boat and collected the man's wife and gently informed her that he seemed stressed and perhaps she should go to him. She told me that he had been to a cardiologist the day before and had turned down the cardiologist's offer for care. Hmmmm....that doesnt sound good. Well you can only lead a horse to water. The man sat around with Tom for about 30 minutes and regained his color. He paddled a bit more, had lunch and went home. Jim et al *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
If that man won't accept medical care, I'm afraid his wife will soon be a widow. I'm very glad I paid attention to my angina symptoms, slight as they were, and went to the emergency room. My wife and I had planned a two-week August trip to the Pukaskwa shore of Lake Superior, where radio communications is spotty and you can be up to 55 miles from the nearest road access. With 90% blockage in one of my coronary arteries, I might have finished the trip okay, but there was also a strong possibility of a heart attack far from any aid. Now that I have had my quadruple bypass operation, my cardiologist says he would have no qualms about such a trip -- even this year. This issue does bring up a couple of questions, though: (1) What would the club's legal liability be if that man had had a heart attack during the event? (2) Should a club restrict participation by people with obvious health problems? Chuck Holst *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Chuck wrote: - > This issue does bring up a couple of questions, > though: (1) What would the club's legal liability > be if that man had had a heart attack during the > event? (2) Should a club restrict participation > by people with obvious health problems? G'Day, This does'nt strictly address legal issues but might be useful. Last year I blacked out driving a car and ran into the back of the car ahead of me. I stopped driving for a month, informed the insurance company who insures me agaisnt road accidents and informed the Road and Traffic Authority (RTA - The NSW Australian organisation responsible for driving licences fines etc). During that month rode a bike to work through the park and underwent tests which helped diagnose a Transient Ischemic Attack and determine treatment. After a month of testing the medication the doctor wrote a report and filled out forms declaring me fit to drive, which the RTA and insurance company accepted. After diagnosis I recommenced kayaking with some close friends who were willing to acept the risk and inconvenience, but stopped kayaking with the club. Once the RTA had said I could drive I told the club the situation and asked about eligibility for kayak trips. Their attitude was that if it was good enough for the RTA to allow me to drive then they were happy for me to join kayak trips, so long as I formally took responsibility. They did not require me to inform the trip leader on every occasion but did say I should let the trip leader know for big trips. However, I've decided to let the trip leader know before each trip. They also suggested splitting my medication into two packs one held by me and a spare held by someone else in case of accidental loss. Hope this helps, PeterO *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I was in a local marine supply shop today and saw something I'd not seen before - at least not for sale in such a place - a portable defibrillator. For a mere C$3500 (~US$2800) you can have your own heart kicker, complete with instructions on the inside of the lid. Mike *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Michael Daly wrote: >I was in a local marine supply shop today and saw something I'd not >seen before - at least not for sale in such a place - a portable >defibrillator. > > > My wife found a supplier at work for $500 US and a nurse in our club verified the price as accurate. She said they are easy to use. The device actually talks to you and walks you through each step. I have never seen one but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night... Jim et al *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=100011&item=7524888532&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW Freaky! I guess you can find anything on ebay. This is an older model but seems to give an idea of what one might look like. Jim et al *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
On Thu, 23 Jun 2005 00:45:32 -0400, Jim Farrelly wrote: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=100011&item=7524888532&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW Freaky! I guess you can find anything on ebay. This is an older model but seems to give an idea of what one might look like. ==================== We have two Automated External Defibrillators ("AED") in our small VT town, received via state grant. They are very small, about 15 CM x 15 CM x 30 cm, including the nylon carry pack. See a picture here: http://www.sover.net/~amcl/ Alas, these units are likely to fail prematurely and the company that made them went out of business. Thankfully for us, the state is planning to replace these with different units from another manufacturer. See http://www.fda.gov/oc/po/firmrecalls/accessCardio11_04.html and http://www.early-defib.org/news.asp?news_id=131 for specific info. Anyway, I mention all this for two reasons. First, modern AED's are very compact and easy to use and certainly could be brought along on a kayak outing. Second, avoid any AED's made by this particular company, Access CardioSystems, that may end up on the market (at Ebay or otherwise). And yes, CPR can work but the success rate is in the single-digit percent range. AED's are MUCH more likely to save a life. --allan *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
On 23 Jun 2005 at 10:56, Allan McLane wrote: > We have two Automated External Defibrillators ("AED") in our small VT > town, received via state grant. They are very small, about 15 CM x 15 > CM x 30 cm, including the nylon carry pack. Wow - that's about half the size of the one I saw. I'm not sure if there was any waterproof rating associated with the one I saw, but it was being sold to sailors. It did look like a reasonably rugged plastic case (ABS, I think). If small enough, I guess a non- waterproof unit could be put into a Peli-box. Suitable for pool sessions and beach-oriented instruction sessions, but way too much baggage for an extended kayak trip. Mike PS - I was camping with a bunch of kayakers last weekend, one of whom had a black Peli-box for his camera. With the stickers on it, I thought it was a car battery with handle :-) *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
They are becoming quite common. By law every health club in Illinois must have one. Our campus police carry them in the shift commanders car and have already saved a life. Their use is covered in almost all first aid/ CPR classes now. They are almost fool proof. It will tell you if you connect it wrong. According to our CPR instructor they are far more effective than CPR. The prices are coming down fast, they are available in the $1500 - 1800US range. Haven't seen one JIS-7 rated yet. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Michael Daly" <mikedaly_at_magma.ca> To: "Paddlewise" <PaddleWise_at_paddlewise.net> Sent: Wednesday, June 22, 2005 11:17 PM Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Safety Clinic >I was in a local marine supply shop today and saw something I'd not > seen before - at least not for sale in such a place - a portable > defibrillator. For a mere C$3500 (~US$2800) you can have your own > heart kicker, complete with instructions on the inside of the lid. > > Mike *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
It's surprising how many people have no medical insurance. This guy probably sees bankruptcy ahead if he goes to a cardiologist. Craig Jungers Royal City, WA On 6/21/05, Jim Farrelly <JFarrelly5_at_comcast.net> wrote: > She told me that he had been to a > cardiologist the day before and had turned down the cardiologist's offer > for care. Hmmmm....that doesnt sound good. Well you can only lead a > horse to water. The man sat around with Tom for about 30 minutes and > regained his color. He paddled a bit more, had lunch and went home. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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