In high school, Youshra Ahmed, 20, used CPR to save her neighbor’s life.
On Saturday, the UF health science junior helped run the fifth annual GatorSavers event hosted by GatorCPR. During the event at the Reitz Union, about 500 students and Gainesville community members were trained and certified to give CPR and use an automated external defibrillator, which can be used to restart someone’s heart. The training cost $5.
Attendance was down slightly from past years, in which about 700 people had attended.
“You can save a life because you know how to do CPR,” Ahmed said.
More than 100 mannequins and 70 AEDs were used during training.
A 35-minute video showed participants how to perform CPR. The video was paused every few minutes so they could practice on their mannequins. About 70 volunteer instructors taught compressions, ventilations and how to use an AED.
Clay Gibbons, the owner of GatorCPR, said it was important for people to learn how to do chest compressions.
“The more people that know CPR, the higher the survival rates,” Gibbons, 45, said.
Christina Callesis, the director of operations and training at GatorCPR, said the event is cheaper because it helps GatorCPR give AEDs to the community.
“Through GatorCPR, we offer CPR certification year round,” the 22-year-old UF alumna said, “but this is the cheapest they will find it, because it doubles as a fundraiser for the nonprofit to grant a public-access AED in the community.”
Lydia Hensel, a UF health science sophomore, waited in line to donate blood at the event. LifeSouth Community Blood Centers received 38 donations.
The 19-year-old said the event helped her learn what to do in an emergency.
“I feel more prepared leaving than when I walked in to help someone in an emergency situation,” she said.
