Here is a transcript of Kiya’s presentation:
Ryan: So now I would like to introduce our speaker today who, Kiya,
Ryan: I looked up this statistic when trying to write the description about your presentation.
Ryan: So the average ambulance response is about 7 minutes in a city and about 14 minutes in rural areas, so that’s some pretty serious.
Ryan: Time that between when a medical emergency occurs and when help arrives.
Ryan: So to help make sure that each of us are prepared for emergencies that could happen at work, I’d like to introduce to everyone Kiya Beard who’s going to talk to us about every second that counts.
Ryan: So Kiya.
Ryan: You have the floor.
Kiya: Hey, so let’s talk about your statistics first.
Kiya: So again, I’m Kiya.
Kiya: I’ve been teaching CPR for about four years now.
Kiya: I teach all providers and I’ve also been an EMT for the last two years.
Kiya: So becoming a EMT help me connect more.
Kiya: The importance of CPR.
Kiya: Of course I knew before I was a EMT.
Kiya: Hey you need to do this to maybe save their lives stop brain damage.
Kiya: Just make it easier.
Kiya: But on the other side.
Kiya: Of the spectrum I was.
Kiya: Able to physically see what not doing CPR actually has, does.
Kiya: To a person.
Kiya: So when it comes to your 7 minutes.
Kiya: And then that is absolutely correct.
Kiya: And let me tell you, we get cursed out all the time – what took you so long to get here.
Kiya: We called you and in their mind we’re just rolling up three days later.
Kiya: So first, if law enforcement beats us to the scene, they make us stage around the corner until they clear the scene.
Kiya: So someone could actually be bleeding out.
Kiya: On the lawn.
Kiya: If they feel like the shooter is still around, the crowd is too rowdy or like everywhere.
Kiya: Indianapolis, there’s too many animals in the yard they will stage us, no matter how bad it is.
Kiya: But then it’s the actual fact we.
Kiya: Have to get to you.
Kiya: I’m just gonna be so honest.
Kiya: Hey no one stops for us.
Kiya: They either don’t stop.
Kiya: Or they see our lights and for some reason go into a complete panic.
Kiya: They’ll either slam on their brakes in.
Kiya: The middle of the intersection.
Kiya: Or my favorite, they will try to race with us so they’ll see us behind.
Kiya: US behind them.
Kiya: And instead of moving, they’ll speed because we’re speeding.
Kiya: Or they’ll see us speed through the intersection and then there come behind us and speed right behind.
Kiya: So it’s the actual getting to you.
Kiya: We want to get there, but it’s getting there safely that’s the problem, so I definitely want to touch on the statistics ’cause what I tell you.
Kiya: You know that is my biggest gripe, like people do not stop for us. Certain sides.
Kiya: Of the city.
Kiya: They do, certain sides.
Kiya: We literally have to cross.
Kiya: Now, when it comes to the importance of CPR, I don’t want this to sound like a sales pitch, so I’m just gonna basically tell you what it does.
Kiya: And what happens when you don’t do it.
Kiya: So we’re going to take first aid and set it.
Kiya: To the side.
Kiya: And the CPR part.
Kiya: So CPR is basically compressing on the chest about 2 inches deep.
Kiya: To get the blood.
Kiya: The oxygen that’s remaining in the blood up to the brain back down to the vital.
Kiya: Organs, that’s what’s the compression part.
Kiya: is for.
Kiya: When we get to the AED which we used to shock, what happens is when someone’s in cardiac arrest their heart is quivering.
Kiya: What we do is we shock the heart and it flatlines the heart.
Kiya: That’s it, flatlines it if they are healthy human being, the heart should start back on its on being normal so.
Kiya: Uhm, Grey’s Anatomy, House is a little dramatic.
Kiya: Uh, maybe does not shock them back from the dead.
Kiya: They have to have some type of shockable rhythm has to be some type of heartbeat in order for the AED to work.
Kiya: It’s OK, I’ve been teaching that for so long, things of that nature.
Kiya: Hey, this is really important.
Kiya: Never put.
Kiya: The two together.
Kiya: Real quickly I got called out on the call. We responded to a 42 year old woman. She was healthy.
Kiya: No medical history, no nothing.
Kiya: Something happened whereas she went into respiratory distress, which led to cardiac arrest and no bystander CPR was performed.
Kiya: Uhm, when we use our AED to shock her back, yes we brought her back to life.
Kiya: But she’s now a vegetable in hospice due to the brain damage caused
Kiya: From not doing CPR that will always stick with me because like I said she was a healthy woman.
Kiya: The way it infected.
Kiya: The people around her, her family, and.
Kiya: Her quality of life.
Kiya: So that is why I constantly do what I do, especially with my family.
Kiya: We’re all grown here when it comes to my race, blood pressure, and diabetes and stroke.
Kiya: Is on the all time high.
Kiya: And guess what?
Kiya: Everyone on my father’s side of the family.
Kiya: Has all those things.
Kiya: So that’s why I wanted to get into the first aid part where it’s hey I need to know what’s the signs when something is going wrong.
Kiya: ’cause usually.
Kiya: You missed a sign, and once it goes wrong, it’s too late.
Kiya: And nowadays, again, like I say I hate to say it, but nowadays we have grandparents raising grandchildren.
Kiya: We have kids watching their siblings because mom or dad can’t afford childcare.
Kiya: So there at work all day.
Kiya: Take it all those scenarios born in a one part parent household where my sister had to watch me, temporarily growing up with my grandmother who had all those conditions.
Kiya: That’s what drives me to continue to teach the CPR.
Kiya: And first aid. We need to have people.
Kiya: More educated on what can happen.
Kiya: First, I was hearing, you know, I don’t want to do CPR because I don’t want to put my mouth on people.
Kiya: We get that. Us at EMS.
Kiya: We don’t put.
Kiya: Our mouth on so you don’t have to.
Kiya: Do mouth to mouth in order to do CPR.
Kiya: Oh, I don’t want to do CPR because what if I hurt them?
Kiya: Or break something.
Kiya: We hear that a lot too.
Kiya: Well, not to be insensitive, but they’re already dead.
Kiya: You can’t make them better.
Kiya: That’s what we say all the time.
Kiya: You can’t make them better and then here’s what we know in the state of Indiana we have this Good Samaritan law.
Kiya: Good Samaritan Law says hey, if I act in good will and he or she is unresponsive, I can’t get sued.
Kiya: No matter what.
Kiya: Uhm, that’s my.
Kiya: I try not to go off on that because if it’s personal because I’ve witnessed so many things happen.
Kiya: There’s so many people who will still be here if someone did at in those seven to 14 minutes that it takes us to get.
Kiya: Do you have any questions about that?
Kiya: When it comes to the workplace.
Kiya: It’s not so much what we’ve been seeing.
Kiya: We replied to or respond to these companies.
Kiya: It’s not so much the companies fault that whatever accident took place, we have people who’s coming into work who was out all night.
Kiya: They’re tired.
Kiya: We do have functional Alcoholics.
Kiya: We have people.
Kiya: Are going through so much at home.
Kiya: That they put it all out on the table when they get to their job and their focus off.
Kiya: And that’s with the accident happens.
Kiya: And what we
Kiya: Notice is everyone sues for everything, so I tell companies all the time, no matter what you do.
Kiya: Even if you do not go to a certification class, at least learn the basic skill so when the family or friend comes to you about what happened on your grounds, you can at least say I did the best I can do.
Kiya: Until we could get further help.
Kiya: So that’s why I offer a variety.
Kiya: The classes, I accept anyone because you just never know.
Kiya: Never know when something can happen.
Kiya: I was just in Kroger right here on Shortridge just got off work, went in there to get milk.
Kiya: Guess what, a guys low blood sugar went low and he collapsed in line.
Kiya: Only me and the officer knew what to do.
Kiya: Everyone just kind of stood around.
Kiya: They didn’t know the telltale signs.
Kiya: They didn’t know what to do or how to do it, and lo and behold, people think oh, it’s just blood sugar.
Kiya: But what people don’t know is if it gets so.
Kiya: Low and that person goes to sleep.
Kiya: They’ll never wake up, they’ll be in a.
Kiya: Diabetic coma so it’s.
Kiya: Stuff like that.
Kiya: They need to know it could start out so minor.
Kiya: Escalate into something that is critical and then that’s kind of the point.
Kiya: Of no return.
Kiya: Questions or comments?
Kiya: If you look so.
Kiya: You look so connected.
Kiya: Questions or comments?
Ryan: That’s a good point.
Kiya: It is and when I was smaller or younger I used to think, oh, we don’t have to worry about heart attacks.
Kiya: That’s for old people.
Kiya: Oh, we don’t have to worry about strokes.
Kiya: That’s for old people. No!
Kiya: I’ve transported kids.
Kiya: That’s on a diabetic pump.
Kiya: Yes, the younger generation does not go for heart attacks, but we have so many allergies that cause anaphylaxis.
Kiya: Their throat closes, which leads into that cardiac arrest.
Kiya: We have young people who.
Kiya: Like in this 90 ,perfect example, in this 90 degree weather that the young people out there playing their heart out, they’re not staying hydrated, and then they experience a heat stroke, which is the point of no return.
Kiya: So people don’t think about that.
Kiya: It’s not age related anymore, it literally can happen to.
Kiya: Anyone and you don’t have to have a previous medical background for it to happen.
Kiya: It could just happen just like that.
Kiya: [unknown], especially if you’re working with the public of all ages.
Kiya: Even the tech.
Kiya: If you have technicians that go out, even if you have someone come to your office, at least have one or two people who is CPR trained in the first aid kit.
Kiya: If you working with the public face to face, I encourage everyone just to learn the basic skills ’cause you just never know what can happen.
Kim: Hey can I ask you a question?
Kiya: Yes, ma’am.
Kim: So the reason we’re all engaged and looking at you?
Kim: Because it’s fascinating.
Kim: We’re all learning, but uhm, so.
Kim: Well, I was an EMT, but it was a.
Kim: Long, long, long.
Kim: Long time ago, probably before you were born back in 1992, I took a job as a.
Kim: Sales Rep for.
Kiya: I was born a few years.
Kiya: Thank you.
Kim: Alright, I took a job as a sales Rep for emergency medical products.
Kim: I sold bag valve masks and ventilators for ventilators and.
Kim: You know the lerdahl kits and all that?
Kim: Uhm, so I went and got my EMT license so that I could, you know, learn more about walking the walk and.
Kim: Talking the walk.
Kim: Up I hear what you say about.
Kim: The Good Samaritan law and.
Kim: I remember, you know, learning about.
Kim: That, but I guess what my
Kim: Question is, is you just said
Kim: And I remember this people are like back back when we would carry these little.
Kim: They’re called lerdahl kits and we keep them in our glove box and you pull it out.
Kim: And it’s a it’s a real quick mask that you can blow into so you.
Kiya: Oh, that’s the pocket mask with one with valves.
Kim: Where you called.
Kiya: The pocket mask with the valves.
Kim: Pocket mask this out.
Kim: OK yeah.
Kim: So you said earlier for us laymen, now ’cause I’m a layman now, uhm?
Kim: You don’t have to touch your lips to somebody and I get it, especially in a worldwide pandemic.
Kim: Give us some options, should we
Kim: If we’ve not been trained in CPR, would you recommend that we go to somebody and try to do CPR?
Kim: If we knew a little bit enough to be dangerous and what’s an
Kim: Alternative to putting our mouth to mouth.
Kiya: OK, so.
Kiya: I’m going to be honest with you, ventilations are not important.
Kiya: If you don’t have O2.
Kiya: But mouth-to-mouth is more important in the pediatric crews than adult crew anyway.
Kiya: ’cause pediatric, UM, they’re more if they don’t have any underlining health issues, you know it’s more of a respiratory thing versus the cardiac thing, compressions.
Kiya: Is more towards cardiac, so ventilations are not so much more important in the adult population because they went down.
Kiya: ’cause it’s hard.
Kiya: When it comes to compressions, yes, I would tell anyone.
Kiya: Someone dropped in front of you.
Kiya: The easiest way to do compression is find the lower half of their breastbone, put your hand at this part of your hand right above it in the center of the chest and press heart as fast to ‘Stayin’ Alive’.
Kiya: Even have to see what the.
Kiya: See what I see.
Kiya: ‘Stayin’ Alive’ a song at 120 beats per minute. So yes please do compressions because when we do get on scene, it’ll make our job much easier and their quality of life depends on those first couple of minutes of CPR not 7 minutes. The first couple of minutes that they drop.
Kiya: So I would suggest yes.
Kiya: Don’t worry about breathes, you know we don’t. We don’t do it breathes. We only blow out about 21% anyway. O2 and when we do mouth-to-mouth, they get 90.
Kiya: So in adults.
Kiya: Are honest to say if it’s not connected to our O2 tanks, it really doesn’t do it.
Ryan: Kiya?
Ryan: What are some of the most common medical phenomena or conditions that happen to people where they experience a medical emergency?
Kiya: Like what, uh, what are they doing when it happens?
Ryan: What are some of the most common reasons, for example, someone standing in line at the store drops on the floor?
Ryan: What are some of the things that we should be looking for?
Kiya: Oh stroke, stroke is number 1 because peoples blood pressures all over the place.
Kiya: Aneurysms, aneurysms is really big.
Kiya: ’cause they that’s the blood vessel in your head that can bust at any time and it will drop them, UM.
Kiya: Diabetes is a big one.
Kiya: Diabetes is a big one.
Kiya: I see it all the time.
Kiya: They’ll see someone, they’ll confuse someone with low blood sugar with a drunk, and they won’t take you in.
Kiya: ’cause what happens is when someone’s blood sugar dropped, they get a altered mental status and they do seem.
Kiya: Like they’re drunk.
Kiya: And it, and if that goes for.
Kiya: So long they would drop.
Kiya: And heart attack, heart attack.
Kiya: Is one.
Kiya: If they are in the heat like this, heat stroke is 1 because this 90 degree weather.
Kiya: This is heat exhaustion weather. That don’t mean you have to be going physical activity in the heat.
Kiya: That just means it’s so humid that it will literally drain.
Kiya: Yeah, stay hydrated, have to keep the sun off of you.
Kiya: Things like that.
Kiya: So those.
Kiya: Are #1
Kiya: Things: the stroke, the diabetes, and the aneurysms.
Jeannette: When I see people exercising, running out in this weather in the afternoons, I just want to throttle them.
Jeannette: That is so dangerous for them.
Jeannette: Much more dangerous than going without the exercise.
Kiya: Yes, I see we have a lady over here who runs 365.
Kiya: It’s snowing, she’s bundled up like a little astronaut running, it’s hot.
Kiya: She got in a little sports bra and her little shorts and I tell her she does have.
Kiya: A water but.
Kiya: I said you have to stay hydrated.
Kiya: ’cause it’s not much shade where we stay at, not in the front yard.
Kiya: Everyone cut their trees down so it’s more in the back.
Kiya: I said you have to stay hydrated ’cause it is.
Kiya: It’s bad. Even tanning, tanning.
Kiya: If you get too hot and not hydrated, that’s not good for you either.
Kiya: And the sauna.
Kiya: It’s all about keeping hydrated, if you’re thirsty.
Kiya: You’re already dehydrated.
Jeannette: Yeah, Kiya, do you teach classes or do you recommend that we go to like the the health department for their classes?
Kiya: Oh yes, I teach classes in my facility in Cumberland, IN, and I also go to a lot of places to teach on-site classes for their staff or their community.
Kiya: I’ve been to churches, something like that.
Kiya: I’ve been to a lady house because she was watching her disabled nephew.
Kiya: She can’t get out, so she booked me for a private class in her living room with her Chihuahua.
Jeannette: Do you have a schedule where we can get signed up to take your class?
Jeannette: Or how do we?
Jeannette: Do that.
Kiya: Yes, I’ll put my, uh, email address, my contact information and the actual direct link to our class schedule.
Ryan: Kiya, you mentioned that people don’t know how to yield for an ambulance with the lights on,
Ryan: Are you receiving any any support from the police as far as when these drivers get in your way?
Ryan: Are they ticketing drivers or are you guys being offered any
Ryan: Support in that area?
Kiya: Uhm, so here’s the thing when it comes to law enforcement, they only are, believe it or not, they’re only our escort
Kiya: If we have a criminal back there or we have a mentally,
Kiya: Mental person back there.
Kiya: Who’s high risk as far as being violent towards us.
Kiya: ’cause believe it or not, we can’t restrain. We can do soft restraints but we can’t.
Kiya: Just – if the police is not back there with us, we can’t handcuff them to the cot.
Kiya: They have to be with us, uhm?
Kiya: We, as far as someone helping us I think only got help one time I’m not gonna tell you where I was, but I was at a very popular intersection and this truck driver.
Kiya: He was even getting upset.
Kiya: No one was stopping for me so he blocked one way.
Kiya: Two ways with his trailer.
Kiya: That way I can go across in the.
Kiya: Intersection so yeah.
Kiya: Other than I know they freaking or they race with us.
Kiya: Yes, I know, I know.
Kiya: Sometimes you all have been stuck in traffic and you think it’s actually something going on, but when you finally get up to the point, you just notice people are going slow because they’re watching.
Kiya: The crash on the.
Kiya: Other side, I know everyone has experienced that.
Kiya: That is up anytime they see.
Kiya: US or see something that happens, they just get right away.
Kiya: Inspector Gadgets.
Kiya: Any other questions?
Kiya: Oh, do you know when I say, hey, we have a lot of siblings, especially during COVID and the.
Kiya: Kids were at.
Kiya: Home we had a lot of older siblings watching the younger siblings.
Kiya: I also got certified to teach a safe babysitting class.
Kiya: And they will send their teams through there.
Kiya: I teach them how to babysit safely.
Kiya: How to baby-proof the house and pediatric CPR first aid, changing their [diapers] properly.
Kiya: I actually teach a safe sitter class for them as well.
Kiya: Any other questions?
Kiya: No? ’cause everyone is smiling.
Ryan: Well, if there aren’t any other questions for Kiya, let’s give her a hand for her presentation today.
Kiya: Thank you.
