By Rob Rogers
Marin Independent Journal
NOVATO, Calif. — Novato school officials have agreed to install automated external defibrillators at the district’s high schools, declaring that the devices’ potential to save lives trumped concerns about liability.
“I know we won’t be fully protected” from potential lawsuits, board President Tom Cooper said at the district’s meeting Tuesday. “But I think the benefits outweigh the risks.”
Automatic external defibrillators can deliver a powerful electric shock to someone who is in cardiac arrest. That shock can give a victim a better chance of survival while waiting for emergency services personnel to arrive, said Jodie Bradley, a Healdsburg emergency services technician, who once used the device to save the life of a 15-year-old high school student.
“Early CPR and that single shock saved that student’s life,” said Bradley, a former Novato resident. “It isn’t feasible for many towns to increase their emergency personnel. It is feasible to supply AEDs to facilities with large amounts of people.”
The board’s unanimous decision followed the recommendations of emergency services personnel, including the Novato Fire District, which offered to provide free training, medical oversight and replacement batteries for the devices. The district already maintains 85 defibrillators throughout Novato, with those located in health clubs and distributed to law enforcement officers receiving the most use.
The defibrillators themselves would also be free — a gift of the Novato Fire Foundation.
Members of the Novato board had previously been reluctant to bring defibrillators onto high school campuses, worried that the extensive legal requirements governing their use could open the district to a lawsuit.
“It’s not that we don’t want the best lifesaving equipment available,” said trustee Ross Millerick. “It’s the liability issue that’s just driving me crazy.”
Officials were also concerned that state law requires at least one trained employee to be available during all of the hours the school is open — including evening sporting events or weekend activities.
Yet trustees felt they could address that concern by crafting a policy that specified particular times and places when the defibrillators would be in use. Novato Fire District personnel agreed to work with school officials in developing that policy.
“If we’re going to do this, let’s do it right, with an understanding of what our liabilities and benefits are,” said Novato Superintendent of Schools Jan La Torre-Derby.
Copyright 2010 Marin Independent Journal, a MediaNews Group publication