HR Management & Compliance

AEDs in Your Wellness Program? OSHA Says Yes

In yesterday’s Advisor, we discussed a life-saving device, the Automated External Defibrillator (AED). Today, we’ll cover legal and training issues relating to AEDs, and we’ll get a look at a special wellness program guide that can get your program into tiptop shape.

A number of legal issues must be considered when working with AEDs:

Prescription to Buy. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires a physician’s prescription to buy an AED.

Training. Each state has its own training requirements. For example, almost every state requires an individual to complete basic CPR and AED courses from a nationally recognized organization such as the American Heart Association.

Medical Advisor. Many states require a licensed medical professional—often the medical director of the EMS system or the medical advisor to the workplace—to oversee the program to ensure quality.

Good Samaritan. All 50 states and the District of Columbia now include using an AED as part of their Good Samaritan acts. These acts vary by state, but generally they limit the liability of rescuers using AEDs and others involved with an AED program.

In addition, the Cardiac Arrest Survival Act (CASA) provides limited immunity to persons using the AED as well as the purchaser of the AED unit. CASA is a “gap-filling” federal measure that does not supersede existing state law that provides immunity.

Training

AEDs do not require the user to make decisions or interpret symptoms. Nevertheless, it is recommended that potential users be trained. Anyone can learn how to respond to a life-threatening emergency and use an AED by taking a course that lasts less than 4 hours, such as the American Heart Association Heartsaver AED Course.

Training for designated AED responders generally covers:

  • The location of AEDs in your workplace
  • Step-by-step explanation about how to use an AED
  • Simulated demonstrations
  • Hands-on practice working with the equipment
  • Recognition of sudden cardiac arrest symptoms
  • How to notify emergency response personnel
  • How to perform CPR
  • How to care for victims until emergency medical personnel arrive

Corporate wellness programs show great ROI. And they are win-win—employees feel better and are more productive, and employers reap the benefits. Even small improvements make a difference. Test drive Workplace Wellness with no cost or risk.


Where to Store Your AED

AEDs are typically located in:

  • Areas where many people work closely together, such as assembly lines and offices
  • Places close to confined spaces
  • Where electric-powered devices are used
  • Outdoor worksites where lightning may occur
  • On-site nurse’s/doctor’s offices where workers may seek treatment for heart attack symptoms
  • Workplace fitness centers
  • Cafeterias
  • Remote sites, such as construction projects

Should AEDs be part of your wellness program? OSHA thinks so. But, of course, AEDs are only a small part of a complete wellness program. Well-structured and well-run wellness programs can generate an ROI of up to 300 percent—music to management’s ears! But the key words are “well-structured” and “well-run.” Poorly structured programs just spin their wheels—no health benefit and no positive ROI, either.

Many readers have told us that BLR’s comprehensive guidebook, Workplace Wellness: Healthy Employees, Healthy Families, Healthy ROI, has helped them get programs up and running that achieve wellness objectives with a great ROI while avoiding the legal hassles that, these days, seem to accompany any worthwhile venture in HR.


Wellness—NO downside! Impressive ROI, so management is happy. Better health, so employees are happy. And that means HR is happy! BLR’s Workplace Wellness is the key to developing your workplace wellness program.


It’s a comprehensive guide that takes you step-by-step through setting up a program, from convincing management all the way through creating and implementing a viable plan for your workplace. The guide also includes a vast collection of ready-to-use forms, handouts, and checklists that both structure your program and provide the metrics to prove its effectiveness to management’s satisfaction.

If you’d like to examine Workplace Wellness: Healthy Employees, Healthy Families, Healthy ROI on a no-cost, no-obligation basis for 30 days, we can arrange for you to do so. Let us know and we’ll be happy to set it up.

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