Greg Goodman, senior regional philanthropy officer with the American Red Cross, joined Good Morning Keys on KeysTalk 96.9/102.5 this morning to talk about the organization.
Goodman volunteered with the Red Cross before he became an employee.
He said, “When I joined the Red Cross, and any organization that I raised money for or was involved with, I’ve always taken the time to volunteer, and to volunteer for missions and training, and in the case of Red Cross, I’ve been deployed. I’m CPS certified, so I know how to teach hands only CPR. I teach smoke alarm installation and fire prevention and fire safety and just a lot of things that are really important to me. I was raised on the ocean up north, and we spent the whole summers on the beach and swimming lessons and knowing how to swim was really important to me. I particularly remember seeing how lifeguards and EMTs came and tried to save the life of a little boy that was swimming near me who actually died. He had drowned. So it made it even more important to me to continue learning swim lessons, learning how to swim, and later in life, making sure that I knew CPR, that I was certified in CPR and first aid and such, which is what we at Red Cross, always say, train CPR, train first aid, train to know how to use an AED. So that’s what we do.”
Hands-only CPR is a somewhat new development.
Goodman said, “It’s training people in a very simple way, how to get on their knees and be in the right position to do compressions to save somebody’s life in a moment when that person needs to be saved. In this case, we’re training people compression. We’re training people to do the compression before an AED is available and immediately when somebody has a heart attack or goes out, somebody has to call 911, so when I’m training somebody, I say the first thing that you do is you, say anybody, call 911 and do it now. Then, do you have an AED available? Then that’s when compression starts. And you just do it until the person comes alive again or until the EMTs come to help, to go through what they do as well. So, it’s very important, hands-only. It’s not so hard to learn hands-only CPR, but it’s very important to save a life. I really can’t say that enough.”
May is Water Safety Month.
Goodman said, “In Florida, we go in the ocean, and we can go in our pools year round, but nationally, what we’re saying to everybody now that it’s coming up to the summer, make sure that you understand water safety and swim lessons. These things can reduce the risk of drowning by almost 90% particularly in youngsters between the ages of one and four. So it’s very, very important. We talk about water smarts, really. What to do, like knowing your limitations. Never swimming alone. Ideally swimming if you’re not swimming with a lifeguard, make sure that there is somebody there, a water watcher is present, whether it’s the parent or somebody else, if you’re out on out boating, wear a US Coast Guard approved life jacket. Understand the dangers of hyperventilation. Know how to call to help. Know when to call. Understand the risk of a water requirement, rip tides and water temperature and unclear water and then really learning how to swim, and understanding when you’re entering the water it’s over your head, or exiting the water when you feel in danger. Drowning can happen in a second, in a moment, you don’t know. Families, pay attention to children, or weak swimmers you’re supervising. Again, know the sign someone is drowning and know how to safely assist a drowning person, such as, throw something in that somebody can grab on, but don’t necessarily jump in, unless you really have to to save that person. So you’re saving yourself too, but do what you have to do and again, knowing CPR and knowing first aid is really important. Be a Water Watcher. Understand how to be a Water Watcher. Pay close attention to children and anybody really, avoid distractions like cell phones. Teach children to ask permission to go near the water in the pool, take real precautions, truly understand things.”
What are some of the signs that someone is in distress in the water?
Goodman said, “It can happen in a minute. It can happen momentarily. It’s not necessarily seeing people struggling, it’s paying attention and seeing somebody not come up. Obviously the signs of drowning are, please help me, but sometimes a person drowning cannot do that. Prevention is what we want to do, learning, prevention, teaching. That’s what’s going to help a lot.”
For more information, click here: https://www.redcross.org/