You just never know from one day to another

[Steve Wiltsie]

Good morning,

First of all, this e-mail is going to all of my customers, friends, business
acquaintances, and a couple of e-mail lists I'm a member of.  This is the
first time I've needed to send something to just about everyone in my
Address Book.  So this is somewhat special.

I'm not sure exactly where to start because so much has happened in a short
period of time and yet the main thing happened some time ago.

Let's start like this:  in 2003 the Seattle Institute for Cardiac Research
began a five year international study of the possible advantages of having
an automated external defibrillator (AED) in the home.  This study was
supported by Philips Healthcare by providing 3500 HeartStart Home AEDs to
the study participants. The Home Automated External Defibrillator Trial
(HAT), funded by the National Institutes of Health's National Heart, Lung,
and Blood Institute is the first long-term trial to examine survival outcome
with the use of AED-assisted resuscitation in the home. This international,
multicenter, open, parallel group study of 7,001 patients was conducted in
eight countries, including the United States, from January 2003 through
September 2007.  The study included a control group that received CPR
training only and the test group that received the AED and CPR training.
The study is now over and the results will be announced on Tuesday in
Chicago at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) annual meeting as well
as being published online in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Now you may ask - how in the world does a computer guy in Evansville, IN
know about a study in Seattle, an announcement in Chicago, and an article in
the NE Journal of Medicine?  Well, as some of you already know, my wife,
Jane Ann, was a part of that trial.  Since she had survived a heart attack
in Jan., 1988 and was doing well, she was an ideal participant to determine
if we had a Heartstart AED in our home, and if she went into cardiac arrest,
would the device save her life.  Well, we did, she did, and it did - early
one morning in Nov., 2005.  Since I had been given training on the use of
the AED and in CPR as part of the study, I was able to use it and then gave
her CPR until the paramedics arrived about 9 minutes after I called
911.  She was in Deaconess Hospital here in Evansville for about 2 weeks.
When she first arrived, they cooled her body to about 88 degrees using a
fairly new technique that is supposed to help reduce the possibility of
brain damage after a cardiac arrest.  She was kept like that for about 2
days before they slowly warmed her to normal temperature.  She came home on
Thanksgiving Day, 2005.  She is doing fine!

So that's how I know about the study (although I don't know how many others
the AED helped to save), but why am I writing this to you today?  Well,
since we were one of the success stories, we were chosen by Philips
Healthcare to be the "spokes couple" for the study results.  As such, we had
a video team in our house on Thursday asking each of us questions about the
study and the use of the AED.  These interviews will be used for lots of
different things so you may see them on TV at some point.

Then there was the telephone interview yesterday with the Medical Editor of
USA Today.  That article is supposed to be in the Wednesday edition -
internationally - and provided to the 60 newspapers the parent company owns!

But it doesn't stop there.  Tonight about 6PM a video crew from the "ABC
World News with Charles Gibson" will be at our house to tape an interview
to be used on the Tuesday evening news.  Jeesh!

Those of you I called a day or so after she was taken to the hospital may
remember that I could hardly talk to you about what happened that morning -
and I still turn into a blubbering idiot when trying to describe the entire
event.  So if you see any of the interviews, please give me a break!  :o)

Anyway, I just thought it would be appropriate to let everyone know about
this ahead of time.  It has been quite a whirlwind over the last few days
but our feeling is that it's important to help get the word out that an AED
in the home can help to save a life.  By the way, you can get a Philips
Heartstart at some local drugstores or on-line for around $1200-$1400.  Yes,
I do think they are worth it and, as far as we are concerned, the study was
100% successful!

Now you know.

Steve Wiltsie

Notes:

1. My new left hip is doing fine.  For those of you who didn't know, I
received the first replacement hip at St. Mary's hospital here in Evansville
that was done using the new (for here) "anterior approach" where they go in
from the front instead of the rear.  It takes a special operating table and
special training for the doctor.  I was back to work in one week and was
allowed to drive in two weeks!  I guess between Jane Ann and I we are
keeping the local hospitals busy.  :o)  I'm just glad we have them!

2.  Judy, while I will be working in Princeton today, I won't be able to
make your PHS Class of '64 impromptu get together at Dick Clarks restaurant
at 6.  It's that "can't be two places at the same time" issue that I know my
customers would like for me to resolve.