Philips Heartstart Home Defibrillator Review
The Philips Heartstart Home Defibrillator has the features of running self tests to ensure it is in working condition on a daily basis and detection specific heart rhythms to deliver a shock only in those cases where it it necessary. In panic situations the unit vocally walks the user through the steps in a calm clear manner. It only requires the operator to place the sensors in the correct positions and follow directions. It can coach through the CPR process which improves the rate of successful attempts.
The product includes both a training video on DVD and a training booklet. It comes with discount coupons toward CPR training through the American Red Cross, American Heart Association, or Medic First Aid. The adult cartridge lasts two years, the battery four years and the warranty five years. Infant and child sized pads cartridges can be purchased with a prescription. Also part of the purchase are customer service and post-use counseling. The product was designed for those cases of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in the home to provide emergency treatment in the critical first minutes. Because the chance of recovery drops by ten percent per minute that passes, it is thought that having a home defibrillator can help save lives. In commercial settings this has proven true with citizen response times to SCA dropping reaction time to under two minutes. Nearly eighty percent of those treated in this manner survive.
I looked to customers who had bought the unit in order to get an idea of how well the product performed. Of the seventy seven reviews, Sixty were five star rated. The other ten were divided between four stars, three stars, and one star. Many of the critics on this item focus on one thing: lack of training. Many show they themselves have not read the full product description by indicating that the item is not water tight, or idiot proof, or easy to use (because it has two paddles instead of one).
Those who were five star reviewers were, by and large, people who had bought the unit or had taken training to use one as part of a CPR class. They repeat what is in the product details, like the voice talk through, the fact that CPR may be necessary, that HeartStart will only work on another person, not the operator, and that the questions about medical health should be addressed by your doctor- a defibrillator is not a replacement for medical care.
Those few who have had to use the unit point out that it is easy to use, and they have saved lives on it. It is the preferred unit for many locations as a training AED device. One reviewer points out that this is the brand that is commonly seen on airplanes and one of the few that is safe to be used on children (with the correct pads). Time and time again is it pointed out that the training DVD is not enough, that one should take the entire family and use the coupon that comes with the unit to get training on how to use it and how to deal with medically emergencies. Another reviewer points out that defibrillator application in cases of complete flatline will not work and that CPR is vital to saving those lives because they need drugs injected into the heart to make the application of a shock successful.
What can having this device actually do? In locations where medical response is slow because of distance, traffic, staff shortages, or what have you, an AED can save lives when used by someone who has CPR training. It can give a peace of mind to family of someone who might suffer from heart problems. It can and has inspired families to get CPR training so that each person in the family has the basic tools to save a life. One Doctor even stated that because this device can be bought by anyone that church groups and other small organizations consider buying one and investing in the training to use it. In trying to determine if an AED is right for you, he suggests reading the section about them on the American Heart Association website. And another person who actually had used the unit stated that he had not only saved the life of a co-worker with one, but that she was back at work two weeks later. Cutting through the emotional opinions in this case is nearly impossible, but the situation is fairly clear that with training these are valuable lifesaving tools.
Click here to visit official website for more details
Related Posts Automated External Defibrillator Echocardiogram Electrocardiogram First aid for heart attack Heart Stress Test Nuclear Stress Test Reasons for Heart Attack
|
