By the end of the day Friday, all Albert Lea School District buildings will have automated external defibrillators on site as well as people trained to use them.

A partnership between the district, Albert Lea Medical Center and the Albert Lea Wrestling Boosters has made the new public access defibrillator program possible, said Carol Bosma, a licensed school nurse.

“It was time to do it,” Bosma said, adding other schools in the Big Nine conference have put the equipment in their buildings.

Automated external defibrillators may be used by anyone with the appropriate training to treat victims of sudden cardiac arrest in conjunction with cardio pulmonary resuscitation. They are simple, easy-to-use devices that analyze the heart’s rhythm and deliver a life-saving shock, if necessary.

The district purchased a defibrillator for each school. The Albert Lea Wrestling Boosters purchased a second one for Albert Lea High School, since it is such a large building, Bosma said. An Albert Lea Medical Center team will provide training for responders in each building on cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automated external defibrillators.

Each building will have a response team of six to eight staff members trained in both CPR and AED use, Bosma said.

The defibrillators will be placed in a prominent place in each building, the nurse said, accessible whenever the buildings are open. The white boxes will be clearly marked and an alarm will go off if someone opens the door, alerting others in the building that there is an emergency situation.

“Anyone who comes into the building and who is trained will have access to it,” Bosma said. “They’re for the safety of the students, the staff and the safety of the community members who use the district’s buildings.”

The district chose to purchase Zoll defibrillators because of their ease of use, said Lisa Dugger, a licensed school nurse. They are the same brand of defibrillators used by ALMC emergency medical technicians.

“The pads are easy to put on, and it verbally talks a person through using them,” Dugger said, adding there are also pads set up specifically for children 8 years and younger.

“We liked the fact that it was all one piece and had a land marking (for CPR),” Bosma added.

“Sudden cardiac arrest strikes people of all ages and fitness levels, usually without warning,” said Superintendent Mike Funk. “Implementing an AED program can help us protect the lies our of students, co-workers and community members.”

Bosma said every situation doesn’t require automated external defibrillation. “Many only require CPR,” she said.

However, the defibrillator can make CPR more effective. According to Brad Niebuhr, ALMC’s emergency department director, the unit gives step-by-step instructions on what to do once it is turned on.

“The unit actually coaches the user on the effectiveness of their CPR by telling them to compress deeper or faster based on the feedback from placing the pads on the victim’s chest,” he said.

The units cost about $1,350 each, and Bosma said if they save one life, they will be well worth it. “Do we hope we never need them? Yes,” she said.

The school nurses said having CPR and AED training is a good thing for any person. “It covers choking, too,” Bosma said. “It’s infant through adult training.”

Dr. Michael Ulrich, from Albert Lea Medical Center’s emergency medical services and family practice departments, has stepped forward to be the medical director of the public-access defibrillator program.

The Wrestling Boosters will present their donation for the second AED unit for the high school at Friday night’s wrestling match.