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Contact: Kate Cohorst
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americanheart.org
American Heart Association honors Gov. Quinn and local Heart Heroes
Troy referee saved thanks to Illinois AED law championed by Quinn
(Collinsville, IL, Feb. 6, 2008)—Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, Collinsville High School Athletic Director
Matt Badgley, Collinsville High School Athletic Trainer Amanda Baugher and Collinsville Fire Chief
Peter Stehman may not possess supernatural skills, wear capes or drive super-vehicles, but they
have earned the title of American Heart Hero by taking a few critical steps that helped save the life
of Gary L. Gustafson, a referee who collapsed last month during the championship CollinsvilleSchnucks Holiday Classic basketball game at Collinsville High School.
Some quick-thinking bystanders from the stands--Lincoln residents Ann Olson, Debbie
Ramlow, Scott Ritchhart and Karen Hobler--began cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and 911
was called. Soon after, Baugher, Badgley and Stehman arrived with the automated external
defibrillator (AED), and used it to administer a shock that restarted Gustafson’s heart. The AED was
available thanks to an Illinois state law called the Colleen O’Sullivan Act, requiring the equipment to
be on-site at all times in all schools and public athletic facilities. O'Sullivan, a staff attorney for the
Illinois House of Representatives, died of heart complications in 2002 after exercising at a health
club.
Gov. Quinn was a driving force behind that landmark legislation, and also helped create the
Heartsaver AED Fund, which helps provide matching grants to schools, park district facilities and
fitness facilities.
“It was a team effort,” said JR Dietl, president and director of training at Contemporary Life
Saving Training in O’Fallon and a member of the American Heart Association’s Illinois Advocacy
Committee. “The whole reason Gary Gustafson is alive today is that the bystanders acted quickly,
the school implemented the program, people were trained, and the AED was easily accessible.
Everything that should have happened did.”
The American Heart Association is proud to honor Quinn today with the Heart Champion
Award for his pioneering efforts to strengthen the emergency medical chain of survival by promoting
life-saving AED technology throughout Illinois.
The association is also honored to present its American Heart Hero Award to Baugher,
Badgley and Stehman today for their fast response and heroic effort to save a life by using an AED
in an emergency. Olson, Ramlow, Ritchhart and Hobler will be recognized for their roles in the
save at a separate event in Lincoln.
(more)
Collinsville save--2
”By making AEDs available, people who use a few simple skills achieve something
extraordinary — they save lives,” Dietl said. “Today, these Heartsavers are the heroes, but all Metro
East residents can easily become tomorrow’s heroes by knowing to call 911 and being ready to
perform CPR or use an AED.”
In Missouri, the American Heart Association is looking at a current statute to improve access
to Automated External Defibrillators there, so that more lives can be saved. The American Heart
Association is also challenging all Metro East residents to learn how to perform CPR on someone
who suddenly collapses and stops breathing normally, and encouraging businesses, public sites
and other entities to consider implementing programs making automated external defibrillators and
trained rescuers available to administer a potentially lifesaving electric shock to the heart.
Collinsville High School is off to a great start, according to Dietl. The school trained 500
students in CPR last year and plans to train 500 more this year. They have also trained more than
380 staff members and 38 coaches, he said.
Sudden cardiac arrest is most often caused by an irregular heart rhythm called ventricular
fibrillation. This irregular rhythm causes the heart’s electrical impulses to become chaotic, causing
the victim to collapse and stop breathing normally. Unless a normal heart rhythm is restored, death
will follow in a matter of minutes. In fact, the American Heart Association estimates that for every
minute without defibrillation, a person’s chances of survival decreases by 7 percent to 10 percent.
Each year, more than 310,000 people across the country die from coronary heart disease
before reaching a hospital or in an emergency room. Most of those deaths result from sudden
cardiac arrest and 75 percent to 80 percent occur at home. When the arrest occurs outside the
hospital setting, most victims die because CPR and defibrillation were not provided, or were
provided too late. Less than a third of sudden cardiac arrest victims receive CPR when they need
it. Effective CPR can help make the difference between life and death, buying valuable time and
increasing the likelihood that the victim can successfully be defibrillated by an electric shock.
The American Heart Association provides a full range of training and information to help
people learn to perform effective CPR. Family & Friends CPR Anytime is a training program that
can be used at home by multiple family members. Infant CPR Anytime is a similar self- directed
program with instruction on performing CPR on an infant (12 months or younger). For additional
information, visit americanheart.org/cpr, shopcpranytime.org or call 1-877-AHA-4CPR.
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About the American Heart Association
Founded in 1924, we’re the nation’s oldest and largest voluntary health organization dedicated to building
healthier lives, free of heart disease and stroke. To help prevent, treat and defeat these diseases —
America’s No. 1 and No. 3 killers — we fund cutting-edge research, conduct lifesaving public and professional
educational programs, and advocate to protect public health. To learn more or join us in helping all
Americans, call 1-800-AHA-USA1 or visit americanheart.org.
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