The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International has begun a six-month research effort into the benefits of placing Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), devices that can restart a heart that has stopped beating, in private commercial buildings.
Last year, Congress passed legislation that effectively required the General Services Administration (GSA)—the nation’s largest owner and lessor of office space—to stock its public buildings with AEDs. Advocates for AEDs pointed out that in addition to the GSA, some states and localities require the presence of AEDs in public buildings.
An AED is designed to deliver an electric shock to the heart of a person suffering a heart attack; the shock helps the heart re-gain a regular beat. An operator does not need a medical background but is required to be trained on how to use the machine. Because the machine determines if the victim’s heart needs to be shocked, the operator may hook the machine to a person he or she suspects of possibly suffering from a heart attack without endangering the victim’s health. The machine will not deliver a shock unless the victim is in cardiac arrest.
Preliminary recommendations will be made at the association’s annual convention in Baltimore, MD, June 17-19, 2001. During this six-month research period, BOMA International is seeking partners for research, education and training; interested parties should contact Marco Giamberardino, director of codes and standards for BOMA International, at (202) 326-6356 or at mgiamberardino@boma.org.
