Ontario to require AEDs on construction sites
In a push to save lives in the event of heart attacks on the job, Labour Minister David Piccini is proposing legislation to require automatic external defibrillators (AEDs) at Ontario construction sites with more than 20 workers.
Piccini will announce Friday in Whitby that construction firms can apply for reimbursement for the $2,300 machines.
'Every second counts in a cardiac emergency,' Piccini said in a statement obtained by the Star. AEDs are already in a number of locations across the province.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation says putting them on construction sites is a 'step forward' given that 60,000 cardiac arrests take place outside hospitals in Canada every year.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hamilton Spectator
2 hours ago
- Hamilton Spectator
School divisions stock up on naloxone
Some city school divisions are stocking up on naloxone kits and training teachers to administer the antidote to opioids. The River East Transcona School Division recently equipped all of its Grade 9-12 campuses with naloxone — a life-saving medication that temporarily reverses an opioid overdose — in its nasal spray form. Its neighbour to the south, St. Vital-based Louis Riel School Division is following suit in 2025-26. Superintendents elsewhere in Winnipeg are looking into doing the same. The Manitoba government recorded 570 drug-related deaths in 2024. Ten of them involved a child or a person aged 19 or younger, provincial data show. RETSD spokesman Adrian Alleyne said all students and staff in its seven high schools in northeast Winnipeg were taught to recognize signs of drug poisoning this spring. Alleyne touted his employer's approach to student wellness as both 'compassionate' and 'evidence-based' in an email Friday. '(We set) a strong example in addressing substance use in schools,' he said, noting the division is the only one in Winnipeg that has, in partnership with Shared Health, two full-time substance-use counsellors working in its seven high schools. A third professional is slated to join that team to do prevention work in younger grades. Also this fall, LRSD will begin handing out naloxone kits to high school teams in St. Boniface, Sage Creek and surrounding areas. 'Much like the presence of EpiPens and AEDs (automated external defibrillators) in our schools, naloxone adds another layer of preparedness to protect the health and safety of our students and staff,' said Christian Michalik, superintendent of LRSD. Michalik said in a statement that the initiative, to be expanded to elementary schools at a later date, reflects his team's commitment to community safety. It also responds to 'a growing need' to be prepared for medical emergencies related to opioid use, he said. The Louis Riel Teachers' Association was unaware Friday of any specific situations during which naloxone has been administered or required on an LRSD campus, its president said. Teacher Jay McGurran said the union local is supportive of what he called a 'proactive step,' as long as his members — of which there are approximately 1,200 — receive appropriate training so they are prepared in the event of an emergency. (RETSD has ensured at least a half-dozen staff members at each high school know how to administer naloxone, Alleyne said.) Divisions should use naloxone rollouts as a learning opportunity for students and staff alike, said Arlene Last-Kolb, a mother whose 24-year-old son died of fentanyl poisoning in 2014 and has since dedicated herself to harm reduction advocacy. 'If you don't educate the kids, what's the point in having it?' said Last-Kolb, of Moms Stop the Harm. 'You've got to actually go to each class and teach the kids what it's all about. They need to know they can go to the staff and ask for that kit.' There will all but certainly be criticism about schools, especially elementary schools, keeping naloxone on hand, but the reality is these buildings are part of wider communities and preparation is better than the alternative, she said. Last-Kolb noted that children and youth may live with parents or grandparents who use substances. She suggested that learning about naloxone is no different than being taught about 911 or the Heimlich manoeuvre. Health Canada has deemed naloxone safe for all ages. The medication, which does not require a prescription, comes in both nasal spray and injectable forms. It has an expiration date. 'It works only if you have opioids in your system. It is safe to keep on hand because it cannot be improperly used and does not create dependence,' says a fact sheet on the federal agency's website. School trustees and senior administrators are engaged in discussions about stocking naloxone in the Pembina Trails School Division. 'Our school staff have advocated for this addition to their ability to provide first aid,' said Shelley Amos, the superintendent responsible for educating 17,500 students in south Winnipeg. Her counterparts at Seven Oaks and Winnipeg school divisions indicated they, too, are looking into securing naloxone for their respective campuses. The St. James-Assiniboia School Division has decided not to purchase kits for the coming year although a senior employee said the administration is 'committed to evaluating community needs.' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Compress and Shock Foundation offers free CPR and AED usage training during CPR awareness week
ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) — As a part of national CPR awareness week, several local healthcare systems partnered with the Roanoke-based Compress and Shock Foundation to host free educational opportunities to equip the public with the skills to save a life. LewisGale Regional Health System partnered with the foundation to host a class at First Baptist Church in Roanoke that taught around 40 participants. 'Sudden cardiac arrest can happen to anyone, anywhere, at any time,' said Jennifer Herriot-Trejo, director of Hispanic outreach for the Compress and Shock Foundation. 'It does not discriminate based on age, race, anything.' Several volunteers, including a few LewisGale nurses, helped to lead small-group training sessions, where participants were able to practice the skills they had been taught. 'I've always had a passion for cardiac patients and it's great to be able to bring this to the community and teach the community how to save lives and make a difference in someone's life one person at a time,' said LewisGale nurse Heather Snyder. The Compress and Shock Foundation offers free CPR and AED usage training, and as part of their 'education day,' on Saturday, they were active across Virginia and around the country alongside regional health partners. Compress & Shock Foundation hosting health fair on CPR and AED awareness LewisGale's parent company, HCA Healthcare, has invested $40,000 into Compress and Shock, which has allowed the foundation to increase the accessibility of AEDs. After Saturday's class in Roanoke, the partnership between Compress and Shock and HCA Healthcare had provided 15 AEDs to a number of communities, with hopes of supplying 10 more by the end of 2025. '[AEDs] need to be in schools, they need to be in churches, they need to be in sports clubs,' said Herriot-Trejo. 'They need to be accessible so that people are prepared for when something happens. It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when.' Saturday's class was taught bilingually, another component of Compress and Shock's mission to make the knowledge and skills to save a life accessible by all members of the community. According to Herriot-Trejo, non-English speakers often miss out on learning the critical information because of the language barrier. 'We just want to meet people where they are and get things into the languages that they understand,' said Herriot-Trejo. 'So that if they do need to activate their emergency response systems, they're going to feel adequately prepared because they've received that knowledge in their language.' Compress and Shock also partnered with Carilion Clinic to host an education day in Christiansburg. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Embrace private healthcare to fix the NHS, says former Boots boss
The former boss of Boots has urged the Government to embrace private medical care to fix the NHS, as he backed plans to inject tens of billions of pounds into the struggling health service. Sebastian James, the former Bullingdon Club member who endorsed Labour last year, said Rachel Reeves is right to propose a £30bn funding boost for the NHS as part of her upcoming spending review. However, he urged ministers to use the cash to 'grasp the nettle of private provision', as he said that easing pressure on cash-strapped NHS hospitals was key to reducing waiting lists. Mr James is already working with the NHS to help outsource cataract surgeries as the chief executive of European eye clinic chain Veonet, which runs the SpaMedica business in the UK. But he said Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, must go further and faster on working with the private sector after waiting lists recently rose for the first time in seven months. The backlog now stands at 7.42m, according to data released for the end of March. 'We need radical change that can be achieved by releasing a measurable sum of money,' Mr James, the son of the hereditary peer the 5th Baron Northbourne, told The Telegraph. 'We need a more commercial approach. We have to grasp the nettle of private provision. We understand people's hesitation, but we want to see what's best for the patient.' The suggestion echoes ideas put forward by Richard Tice, Reform UK's deputy leader. He has called for the NHS to buy millions more appointments from the independent sector to help address waiting lists, claiming it could help to clear the appointment backlog within two years. This would go further than the Government's current pledge to offer up to a million extra appointments in private hospitals. Yet such ideas are controversial as they will stoke fears of creeping privatisation of the NHS and raise concerns about potential profiteering. Mr James said: 'There are questions about private companies making money. But it's all about how do you square that? 'There are two key things. One, it will still be free at the point of use. And two, the price will be cheaper than what is offered by the public healthcare system.' Mr James has already held talks with Whitehall officials about his plans for the NHS and he said the Chancellor is right to unleash a significant one-off sum. 'You should borrow to pay for it,' said Mr James, suggesting that £20bn or £30bn would barely move the dial when it comes to the country's £2.8 trillion debt pile. However, it comes at a time when the Chancellor is already facing a struggle to balance the books. Ms Reeves will this week deliver her spending review, which is widely expected to unlock an extra £30bn for the NHS over a three-year period. That will be at the expense of other public services, as she is also plotting real-terms cuts to day-to-day spending across many Whitehall departments. Such pressures have emerged because of the Chancellor's fiscal rules, which prevent her from borrowing to fund day-day-day spending. However, Mr James believes that borrowing to fix the waiting list crisis would do far greater good than harm. He said that SpaMedica's role in providing eye services for the NHS should be a blueprint for ministers to work from, as the company claims to have helped cut waiting times for cataract surgery from 18 months to two weeks since Covid. It now provides around 70pc of eye care referrals from the NHS, and last year helped to restore the sight of around 200,000 patients. While it has helped to cut waiting times, SpaMedica is one of many private cataract clinics facing claims of profiteering after they allegedly inflated costs for procedures. A leaked document from the Health Department, first reported by The Sunday Times, alleged that SpaMedica classed its patients as 'higher complexity', which led to procedures being more expensive than they needed to be. Campaigners point to the fact that SpaMedica's profits rose from £63.9m to £71.8m in its last financial year, which they say is proof of the company taking the taxpayer for a ride. SpaMedica has denied any wrongdoing. However, such allegations reflect the fierce debate surrounding privatisation of the NHS, with many households uncomfortable with the prospect of independent providers making a profit while providing medical services, even if they are free for patients. Mr James, who ran Boots from 2018 to 2024, is adamant that ministers must ignore such complaints if they are to have any hope of reducing waiting lists. 'We have cut waiting times down from 18 months to two to three weeks,' said Mr James. 'We have eaten away our waiting list.' This is particularly key for Sir Keir Starmer, who has pledged that 92pc of NHS patients will get an appointment within 18 weeks by the end of the current parliament in 2029. Ultimately, Mr James argues that private healthcare must be embraced because it is far more efficient than the NHS. He said that SpaMedica clinics carry out more than 20 cataract surgeries a day, which is almost double that of NHS hospitals. The fees are also cheaper, he said, as each cataract operation costs SpaMedica £980, compared to around £1,400 on the NHS. 'We've shown that we can do it in our industry, but we need to broaden it out,' he said. 'We could take it area by area, whether that be knee replacements or treating melanomas. 'By working with private healthcare providers, the solution is to save the NHS money. 'We understand people's hesitation, but we want to see what's best for the patient. We're not talking about eradicating the NHS, it's about a partnership.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
