San Diego Project Heart Beat Hosts Public CPR and AED Training Event to Increase Awareness of Sudden Cardiac Arrest
During National CPR and AED Awareness Week, San Diego Project Heart Beat hosted a public Hands-Only CPR and AED training event with Response Ready and CPR1.
Public Hands-Only CPR and AED training event
Community members learning how to recognize the signs of sudden cardiac arrest, perform hands-only CPR.
AED demonstration by the Response Ready team.
Community members across San Diego learning lifesaving skills.
During CPR and AED Awareness Week, San Diego Project Heart Beat hosted Hands-Only CPR and AED training to help community members respond in cardiac emergencies.
SAN DIEGO, CA, UNITED STATES, June 23, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- During National CPR and AED Awareness Week, San Diego Project Heart Beat hosted a public Hands-Only CPR and automated external defibrillator (AED) training event on June 2, bringing together community members from across San Diego County to learn lifesaving CPR and AED skills that can make a critical difference during sudden cardiac arrest and other cardiac emergencies.
The training event was organized by San Diego Project Heart Beat under the leadership of Maureen O'Connor, Program Manager for the initiative, in collaboration with the City of San Diego. The event is part of a long-standing regional effort to increase public awareness, expand access to AEDs, and equip individuals with the knowledge and confidence to take immediate action in the event of sudden cardiac arrest.
Attendance at the event reflected strong community interest in learning practical, real-world emergency response skills. Participants received hands-on guidance on how to recognize the signs of sudden cardiac arrest, perform Hands-Only CPR, and understand how AEDs work to restore a normal heart rhythm before emergency medical services arrive.
Organizers emphasized that survival outcomes in cardiac emergencies are highly time-sensitive. According to the American Heart Association, more than 350,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occur each year in the United States, and survival rates remain relatively low, with approximately one in ten people surviving to hospital discharge.
Immediate bystander action plays a critical role in improving these outcomes. The American Heart Association reports that when CPR is performed immediately, it can double or even triple a person's chances of survival. Despite this, only about 40 percent of cardiac arrest victims receive bystander CPR before professional help arrives, highlighting a significant opportunity for community training and education.
Public health experts continue to emphasize that widespread CPR training and AED training remain among the most effective strategies for improving survival following sudden cardiac arrest. Community education initiatives that focus on Hands-Only CPR, automated external defibrillator awareness, and emergency preparedness help individuals recognize emergencies more quickly and provide critical assistance while emergency medical services are en route. Increasing access to CPR and AED education throughout San Diego County remains an important component of improving community readiness and strengthening the chain of survival.
Enrique Christopherson of CPR1 LLC, part of the Response Ready family of brands, led the AED demonstration and helped guide participants through simple, approachable steps designed to reduce hesitation and build confidence. His instruction focused on making the process clear and accessible for individuals with no prior medical experience.
As part of the event's broader reach, Christopherson was also interviewed by NBC 7, where he shared key lifesaving messages in Spanish. This outreach helped extend the impact of the training beyond those in attendance, reaching more members of San Diego's diverse community and reinforcing the importance of inclusivity in public health education.
"Preparedness is not just about having the right equipment," said Carolena Enayati, CEO of Response Ready LLC. "It is about giving people the confidence to act when every second counts. We are proud to support San Diego Project Heart Beat's efforts to bring lifesaving education to more people throughout our community."
San Diego Project Heart Beat continues to serve as one of the most established and recognized public access defibrillation programs in the United States. Since its founding in 2001, the initiative has focused on improving cardiac arrest survival rates across San Diego County through increased awareness, expanded AED availability, and widespread community education.
Through its long-term efforts and partnerships, the program has contributed to the placement of more than 11,000 AEDs throughout the region in schools, workplaces, public facilities, and community spaces. This level of distribution has helped establish a strong foundation for rapid response during cardiac emergencies.
Under the leadership of Program Manager Maureen O'Connor and the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, San Diego Project Heart Beat has become one of the most recognized public access defibrillation initiatives in the United States. Through its commitment to education, advocacy, and public access defibrillation, the program has helped establish San Diego as a model for cardiac emergency preparedness.
CPR1 and Response Ready are proud to support San Diego Project Heart Beat as the City of San Diego's AED supplier, helping expand access to training, education, and lifesaving equipment throughout the region. The partnership supports San Diego Project Heart Beat's ongoing mission to improve cardiac emergency preparedness and awareness across San Diego County.
Sudden cardiac arrest remains a leading cause of death and can occur without warning in homes, offices, schools, healthcare facilities, sports venues, and public environments. Unlike a heart attack, which is caused by a blockage in blood flow, sudden cardiac arrest involves a malfunction in the heart's electrical system, leading to an abrupt loss of heart function.
In these situations, immediate bystander intervention is critical. Hands-Only CPR helps maintain circulation to vital organs, while AEDs are designed to analyze heart rhythms and deliver a shock if necessary to restore a normal heartbeat. Timing is critical. Studies show that for every minute defibrillation is delayed, the chance of survival can decrease by approximately seven to ten percent.
Sudden cardiac arrest can occur in virtually any setting, including schools, workplaces, healthcare facilities, youth sports programs, public venues, and private residences. As a result, many organizations throughout San Diego County are increasing their focus on CPR training, AED training, First Aid training, and cardiac emergency response planning to improve preparedness and reduce response times during emergencies. Public education events such as this one reinforce the importance of creating a culture of readiness before an emergency occurs and help ensure that more individuals have the confidence to take action when every second matters.
Despite increased awareness in recent years, many individuals still feel hesitant to intervene in an emergency due to lack of training or uncertainty about what to do. Public training events like the June 2 session are designed to address this gap by simplifying the learning process and reinforcing that taking action, even imperfectly, is often better than waiting.
San Diego Project Heart Beat's effectiveness has been demonstrated through real-world outcomes. One early initiative at San Diego International Airport highlighted the lifesaving potential of AED deployment in high-traffic environments. Prior to AED implementation, survival rates for cardiac arrest victims were consistent with broader regional averages. Following the introduction of AEDs, multiple cardiac arrest incidents were successfully managed with significantly improved outcomes, underscoring the impact of rapid access to defibrillation.
Beyond equipment placement, the program has maintained a strong focus on education and community engagement. Its broader vision is to create a culture of preparedness where individuals feel equipped and empowered to respond during emergencies. A key long-term objective is to make AEDs as accessible and familiar as fire extinguishers and to ensure that more people can recognize and respond to cardiac emergencies with confidence.
Looking ahead, San Diego Project Heart Beat plans to continue expanding its training initiatives through additional public events, school-based education programs, and partnerships with local organizations. These efforts are intended to further increase awareness, reduce response times during emergencies, and build a more resilient and prepared community across San Diego County.
Future training opportunities will focus on making CPR and AED education even more accessible, particularly in underserved and high-traffic areas where immediate response can have the greatest impact. Organizers also plan to expand outreach efforts to multilingual communities to ensure broader access to lifesaving education.
San Diego Project Heart Beat has received national and international recognition for its model and outcomes, and its approach has been referenced as a blueprint for other public access defibrillation programs across the country.
Response Ready supports this mission by providing emergency preparedness solutions that include AED equipment, CPR training, AED training, First Aid training, bleeding control programs, cardiac emergency response planning, compliance guidance, and medical oversight support for workplaces, schools, healthcare organizations, youth sports programs, businesses, and community groups. These services are designed to help organizations improve preparedness, strengthen emergency response capabilities, and increase access to lifesaving education and equipment.
Response Ready serves workplaces, schools, healthcare providers, youth sports organizations, and community groups both locally in San Diego and nationwide. Its family of brands includes CPR1, AED Leader, and MDSI Medical, each focused on increasing access to lifesaving resources and education.
Together, San Diego Project Heart Beat, CPR1, and Response Ready are helping expand access to training, equipment, and emergency preparedness education, helping ensure that more individuals are prepared to respond when seconds matter most.
To learn more about CPR training and AED programs, visit CPR1.com.
Additional Resources
• Emergency preparedness solutions: ResponseReady.com
• Medical oversight support: MDSIMedical.com
• AED equipment: AEDLeader.com
About San Diego Project Heart Beat
San Diego Project Heart Beat's mission is to save lives by increasing awareness, education, and immediate access to automated external defibrillators throughout the City and County of San Diego. The program focuses on improving survival outcomes by making AEDs widely accessible and ensuring more individuals are prepared to act during cardiac emergencies.
About Response Ready
Response Ready's mission is to empower anyone, anywhere to confidently protect life and respond in an emergency. The company supports this mission by expanding access to AEDs, CPR and First Aid training, bleeding control programs, emergency preparedness education, compliance guidance, and medical oversight solutions for organizations and communities across the United States.
Media Contact
Shahin Enayati
Response Ready LLC
+1 858-665-8444
info@responseready.com
Editor's Note
This version is optimized for EIN Presswire distribution by incorporating high-value keywords including CPR training, AED training, Hands-Only CPR, sudden cardiac arrest, emergency preparedness, automated external defibrillator, cardiac emergency response planning, San Diego County, workplace safety, and community preparedness while maintaining San Diego Project Heart Beat as the clear focus of the story and preserving the partnership positioning that has been important in prior communications.
Shahin Enayati
Response Ready
+1 858-665-8444
email us here
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San Diego Project Heart Beat Hosts CPR and AED Training with Response Ready and CPR1
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