Shirley McDonald, an American Heart Association volunteer, instructs Jackson Public School administrative staff in CPR techniques during a training session on CPR and AED on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today 
Members of the Jackson Public Schools administrative staff learn life-saving skills during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today 
Andrew Shelby, an instructor from UMMC’s Resuscitation Training Center, answers questions from members of the Jackson Public Schools administrative staff during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today 
Kristina Readman, an instructor from UMMC’s Resuscitation Training Center, demonstrates CPR to members of the Jackson Public Schools administrative staff during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today 
Kristina Readman and Andrew Shelby, instructors from UMMC’s Resuscitation Training Center, instruct members of the Jackson Public Schools administrative staff during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today 
Members of the Jackson Public Schools administrative staff learn life-saving skills during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today 
JoAnn Ward, a human resources representative with Jackson Public Schools, receives instructions from Shirley McDonald, an American Heart Association volunteer, during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today 
Shelia Woodruff, center, office manager at REAP, receives training on using an AED during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. 
Members of the Jackson Public School administrative staff practice CPR techniques during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today 
Members of the Jackson Public School administrative staff practice CPR techniques during a CPR and AED training session on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Mississippi e-Center at Jackson State University. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today
JACKSON – The American Heart Association equipped Jackson Public Schools administrative staff with lifesaving CPR and AED skills through a training session on Tuesday at the Mississippi E-Center at Jackson State University. Trainers from the University of Mississippi Medical Center, an AHA-certified facility, led the session.
The session was funded by a law passed earlier this year that aims to provide 100 AEDs — automated external defibrillators — to schools in the district. It also mandates public schools have a cardiac emergency response plan, including CPR and AED use.
In the U.S., over 356,000 people experience cardiac arrest outside of hospitals annually, with only a 10% survival rate, according to the American Heart Association. Immediate CPR can significantly improve survival odds.
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