Plymouth Rotary Club Helps City Become 'Heart Safe'

For about a year now, the Rotary Club of Plymouth has partnered with Allina Hospitals and Clinics for a project called "Heart Safe Plymouth."

According to the Club's website, the program involves education and training about emergency treatment of Sudden Cardiac Arrest by providing CPR and automated external defibrillator (AED) training to individuals and organizations in the community. So far the group has helped 25 local businesses get trained and educated and most recently the Plymouth City Council. The most recent of which was the city of Plymouth itself.

In fact, the city of Plymouth was designated a "Heart Safe" community at the Sept. 24 Plymouth City Council meeting. The  designation recognizes the effort to prepare staff and citizens to know when someone is suffering a sudden cardiac arrest and how to appropriately respond to it.

It comes after the council and some city department head staff went through CPR and AED training in September at a special meeting in City Hall. And even more city staff members will be getting trained Wednesday, Oct. 9, at City Hall. 

The Rotary wants to continue its efforts with more training, especially for the public at large. A public training session is 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 26, at the Plymouth Library on 36th Avenue North. (Registration is required for the session and can be completed at hclib.org or by calling 612-543-5825.)

The Rotary hopes to obtain grants so it can donate additional AEDs within the Plymouth community. The club has also donated AEDs to and trained staff at IOCP and PRISM.

To reach its goal with the Heart Safe program, the Rotary gets so many "heartbeats" for its community outreach and work. Based on the program Allina has developed and city of Plymouth population, the Rotary must obtain 750 heartbeats to earn the title of "Heart Safe Plymouth."

And there's even more to come.

Volunteers are being sought for the Heart Walk at French Park, Saturday, Oct. 12. There will be a booth there from 9 a.m. to noon to assist with a "CPR training flash mob." The flash mob will be at about 10:15 a.m. Those who could help in the training of possibly many people at once are welcome to email Plymouth Rotarian Russel Carlson at rcarlson20@msn.com.