If a loved one collapsed and was not breathing and unresponsive, would you know what to do to possibly save his or her life?

For too many, the answer would be no.

The week of June 1-7 is National CPR and AED Awareness Week. Its purpose is to spotlight how lives could be saved if more Americans knew CPR and how to use an AED.

Jacob Fannin, owner of Shady Grove Tactical, said every 40 seconds someone in the United States has a heart attack. Every year, about 790,000 Americans have a heart attack.

“About 70 percent of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests happen in homes,” Fannin said. “So, that means that each of us could be in the position of trying to save the life of someone we love. There is also the possibility of being a bystander in a cardiac arrest emergency. Either, scenario accents the importance of knowing how to respond in a cardiac arrest emergency.”

Fannin said National CPR and AED Awareness Week is a call to action.

“Knowing CPR can double one’s chances of survival,” he said. “Twenty minutes of CPR training can save a life. Each of us needs to know how to respond in the event of a cardiac arrest emergency. There’s no need to be afraid to respond; your actions can only help.

“Some of us have taken a course in CPR, maybe in a first aid class or in some training session. Some people have watched a video or, maybe seen CPR performed on a TV show. But how many of us would actually be confident if faced with such an emergency?”

Fannin said the very least the public can do is be prepared to perform Hands-Only CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), which is two-steps to saving lives.

“If you see someone collapse and they are not breathing and unresponsive, you should call 911 and begin Hands-Only CPR by compressing the chest at a rate of about 100 forceful compressions a minute until emergency medical services arrive.”

At one time, mouth-to-mouth breathing was advised but experts now believe an adult who suddenly collapses due to cardiac arrest has enough air in his or her lungs and blood that mouth-to-mouth breathing is not needed, Fannin said.

The two-steps to saving lives in such cardiac arrest situations are to call 911 and push hard and fast.

“But if you have a cell phone, you can place the phone on the floor next to the victim and put it on speaker and call 911 while you are making the chest compressions,” Fannin said. “That way, you don’t lose time going to make a call.”

While Hands-Only CPR might seem rather simple, when personal emotions, the stress of the situation and uncertainty of how to actually perform CPR are factored in, it’s anything but simple.

“Reading about CPR, seeing it demonstrated on a video or even a live demonstration are not like hands-on experience,” Fannin said. “During National CPR and AED Awareness Week, hopefully people in our community will see the life-saving potential of taking a class on Hands-Only CPR and learning how to use an Automated External Defibrillator if available.

Shady Grove Tactical offers classes in Hands-Only CPR/AED and First Aid. The next class will be from 8 a.m. until noon on Saturday, July 28 at Troy Bank & Trust (Lowe’s Branch.)  For more information, call 334-268-0296.