143
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.R. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________


                     HOUSE RESOLUTION

URGING CPR TRAINING IN HIGH SCHOOLS.



 1 WHEREAS, heart disease is the leading cause of deaths in the
 2 United States for adults; and
 3 
 4 WHEREAS, stroke is the third highest cause of deaths and the
 5 leading cause of disability in the United States for adults; and
 6 
 7 WHEREAS, accidents are the leading cause of deaths for children
 8 between the ages of one and eight years of age, and infants
 9 between birth and twelve months of age; and
10 
11 WHEREAS, these deaths occur at any time, without warning, and
12 often in places where qualified medical treatment is not readily
13 accessible; and
14 
15 WHEREAS, saving a person's life often requires quick thinking and
16 life saving assistance within minutes of an occurrence; and
17 
18 WHEREAS, on Oahu the survival rate of pre-hospital cardiac arrest
19 patients is only 5%, in King County, Washington, where CPR
20 training is mandated in high school, the survival rate is 31%;
21 and
22 
23 WHEREAS, current resources are insufficient to provide adequate
24 medical treatment to all areas of the State; and
25 
26 WHEREAS, the American Heart Association (AHA) has attempted to
27 improve public awareness through programs such as "Heartsaver
28 ABC" that, among other things, provides informational segments on
29 the "Chain of Survival," heart attack, stroke signs and symptoms,
30 risk factors for heart disease and stroke, and prevention
31 information; and
32 
33 WHEREAS, AHA also provides a CPR Mass Training Awareness Program
34 instructed by CPR Instructors and the Honolulu Fire Department;
35 and
36 
37 WHEREAS, the most widespread effort to make more people CPR
38 conscious has been AHA's pilot testing of a CPR course for high
39 school and middle school students, referred to as "CPR in
40 Schools"; and
41 
42 WHEREAS, "CPR in Schools" will create a base of CPR Instructors

 
Page 2                                                     143
                                     H.R. NO.           
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 within a designated school and have these instructors teach CPR
 2 to the students;
 3 
 4 WHEREAS, the objectives of CPR in Schools is to help save lives
 5 through community education of CPR, reduce death and disability,
 6 strengthen the "Chain of Survival" in communities by teaching
 7 students CPR, develop a cohesive community program by linking the
 8 AHA, Community Training Centers (CTC), schools, and other
 9 community organizations together, make CPR "serious fun" for
10 kids, and develop a program that is easy for teachers to
11 implement and evaluate; and
12 
13 WHEREAS, a pilot program has been inititated at Hanalani School
14 in Mililani; and
15 
16 WHEREAS, three teachers at the school have completed the
17 instructor training and the first class of fifteen students will
18 be completed by March 3, 2000; and
19 
20 WHEREAS, Pearl City High School is in the third year of a program
21 that teaches CPR to the entire freshman class in one day with the
22 Honolulu Fire Department providing on duty company personnel,
23 Training and Research Bureau personnel, and off duty Fire
24 Department instructor volunteers; and
25 
26 WHEREAS, "CPR in Schools" provides a standardized method for
27 teaching both adult and pediatric CPR to high school students and
28 teachers on "pump n' blow and the clearing of airway
29 obstruction;" and
30 
31 WHEREAS, widespread training in CPR has been successfully
32 implemented in schools across the country and will be beneficial
33 to the public throughout the State; now, therefore,
34 
35 BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twentieth
36 Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2000, that
37 this body strongly urges the department of education to establish
38 and implement a "CPR in Schools" program in every public high
39 school and require that all students take and pass such a
40 program; and
41 
42 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the department of education should
43 provide CPR training; and
44 
45 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the department of education is
46 encouraged to investigate the possibility of utilizing qualified
47 volunteers or other alternative sources for funding; and
48 
49 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution
50 be transmitted to the Governor of the State of Hawaii, the Public
51 Schools Superintendent, the Department of Health, the Fire
 
Page 3                                                     143
                                     H.R. NO.           
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1 Departments of each county, and the Hawaii Chapter of the
 2 American Heart Association and the American Lung Association.
 3 
 4 
 5 
 6 
 7                         OFFERED BY:______________________________
 8 
 9 
10                                    ______________________________