The Business of Saving Lives

In early 2016, the Hopkins Police Department received eight new automated external defibrillators (AEDs) from the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation. These lifesaving tools are used to analyze an individual’s heart rhythm and can deliver an electrical shock to restart a person’s heart, if experiencing cardiac arrest. The department’s previous AEDs were originally manufactured in 2002 and had long been obsolete.

As a smaller organization, Hopkins Police Department lacked the funds to replace all of the AEDs and in an area where police officers are the primary responders to medical emergencies, it was critical for the department to have functional AEDs. The new AEDs were placed into service in the spring of 2016 and have already save two lives.

In August 2016, Hopkins police officers were dispatched to a bicyclist who had collapsed on a local bicycle trail. The officers performed CPR and two shocks were administered using one of the new AEDs. The 59-year-old male regained a pulse on scene. He was transported to the hospital and was released four days later.

In November 2016, Hopkins officers were dispatched to the report of a 65-year-old woman unresponsive and not breathing at her residence. Officers quickly arrived on scene and initiated CPR. The new AED was again used to deliver three shocks. After the third shock, the victim regained a pulse and was discharged from the hospital just a few days later.

“We are in the business of saving lives and truly appreciate the commitment from Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation, who also share in these same values,” said Hopkins Police Department, Police Chief Brent Johnson.

Thanks to the generosity of Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation donors nationwide, the Hopkins Police Department can continue to make a positive impact in the community and save lives for years to come.