John Izak, CPO, general partner of Orthologix, Trevose, Pennsylvania, has created a program to offer free cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), automatic external defibrillator (AED) training, and other emergency medical procedure certification courses to those involved with youth athletics. The program also seeks to place AEDs on the sideline of youth athletic events.
The nonprofit program, Trevor’s Heart Start, is named after a young athlete who went into cardiac arrest at a soccer game Izak was attending in October 2015. The boy collapsed on the field, stopped breathing, and had no pulse. Izak and an emergency medical technician on site started CPR. The local fire department soon arrived and shocked Trevor’s heart with an AED. Trevor was ultimately transported to the hospital. The combined efforts saved his life and prompted Izak to start the program to educate others on how to handle emergencies.
Izak, who also is the assistant chief at the Nottingham Fire Department, Bensalem, Pennsylvania, recently received a certificate of commendation from the Bensalem City Council for his efforts. He was also awarded the American Red Cross Bucks County 2016 First Responder Hero Award.
For more information on Trevor’s Heart Start, e-mail trevorheartstart@gmail.com.
