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When it comes to performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), thousands of Georgia Gwinnett College (GGC) students have the knowledge and skills that could save a life. Every GGC student is required to take physical education 1101, which includes a section that covers compression-only CPR.

Dr. Ken Horowitz, assistant professor of physical education, said that teaching chest compression CPR takes away much of the concerns people would have if CPR still included mouth-to-mouth breathing.

“What we’ve learned is that chest compressions are effective because pushing down on the chest helps inflate the lungs and provide oxygen,” he said. “And it helps keep someone alive until paramedics arrive.”

Chest compressions, according to the American Heart Association (AHA), must be done at 100-120 times per minute. According to the AHA, if a bystander immediately administers CPR, the survival rates increase from 10 percent to over 40 percent or even higher. Since 2017, the AHA has recommended chest-only compression CPR as effective in the first few minutes of cardiac arrest.

On the first day of learning chest compression CPR, students learn the “No, no, go” principle. Horowitz said that if there is no motion and no breathing, then it’s go time to start compressions.

During the class, students learn more than the proper technique and pace for chest compressions.

“We also teach our students how to use automated external defibrillators (AED) machines, which provide a shock to the heart,” he said.

Around the GGC campus, there are 69 AED machines located in all the buildings and in all GGC police patrol cars.

By the end of the spring semester, more than 7,300 students will have learned compression-only CPR and the proper use of an AED. Over the years, many students, faculty and staff who received this training have used their skills to help keep someone alive until paramedics arrived.

View and download CPR class gallery photos.