EAST HAVEN

The East Haven Fire Department (EHFD) is hoping to save more lives thanks to a $121,835 federal grant to be used for the procurement of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) compression devices.

The grant was awarded to the EHFD through the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program, which is part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The $122,000 grant will go to supplying for the department compression devices to be part of each of its unit’s apparatuses that could eliminate hindrances to manually-performed CPR for those suffering from cardiac arrests and save more lives.

Fire Chief Matt Marcarelli and Mayor Joseph Carfora announced the award of the federal grant dollars on June 12, which will add to the over $1.62 million the EHFD has been awarded through FEMA grant programs since 2017.

Carfora commended Marcarelli for his work in acquiring the grant for new technology.

“I commend the chief for his work on this highly competitive grant, and I am pleased to support his efforts. This equipment will save lives in East Haven, and we are fortunate to have a great team of professionals who do great work,” said Carfora.

State Representative Joe Zullo (R, 99) also spoke highly of Chief Marcarelli and his securement of the federal grant for the department.

“I am thrilled that our fire department will be the beneficiary of a substantial Assistance to Firefighters Grant, which will allow the Town to purchase five new cardiac compression machines, which will improve patient outcomes and allow firefighters to better respond to calls,” Zullo said.

East Haven’s congressional representative Rosa DeLauro (D, 3) also expressed her support for the securing of the grants and the benefits of the CPR devices and her commitment “to ensure that this [AFG] program continues to be well funded.”

“The benefits of these CPR compression devices for our firefighters are critical to ensure they have the resources and the tools they need to protect our communities and save lives,” said DeLauro. “The AFG program makes critical investments for the men and women who put their lives on the line for us every day.”

Securing the AFG grant for compression devices is a major step in ensuring that more people suffering from cardiac arrest can be saved with healthier outcomes for survivors, according to Marcarelli.

“The devices have a proven efficacy in the improvement of survivability and cardiac arrest calls,” said Chief Marcarelli, adding that fact was “the driving force” in securing federal funds.

He cited a study approved by the Human Research Protection Program at Pennsylvania State University that reported as much as a 164% return of a heartbeat with the implementation of the devices on a patient, as well as a 21% increase in blood flow to the brain. The study also found that 99% of cardiac arrest survivors had an improved neurological outcome when a compression device was used compared to manually-delivered CPR.

“We wanted to make sure that we provide the best service possible to the community and have an increased survivability rate. So we’re hoping that with the addition of these devices that, we’ll see that,” said Marcarelli.

Given these optimal results, Marcarelli said he wants to see the three volunteer rescue units and five responding career apparatus units of the EHFD to have the compression devices as part of their emergency response methods if such devices need to be deployed.

The devices are smart technology with a suction cup placed above a patient’s chest, then perform resuscitation according to a responder’s settings.

“They provide consistent compressions at the proper depths and at the proper rate. Whereas with the human factor, [with] a firefighter or paramedic, doing chest compressions will get tired, so that’ll affect the rate at which they’re compressing,” said Marcarelli.

The benefits of the devices are not just limited to cardiac arrest survivors. They are also helpful for the town’s emergency service personnel which have limited staffing and responded to 7,417 emergency calls in 2022, said Marcarelli.

“Most of our trucks, with the exception of one, only respond with two people, and if one person is having to be dedicated to do compressions…that frees up one person to assist in the administration of medications, or doing other things that we would do on a cardiac arrest patient,” he said.

Safety for responders is also ensured when helping a victim on the way to the hospital. Marcarelli said there had been fatal instances when unrestrained paramedics performing CPR in the back of an ambulance have died in a collision

“These devices eliminate that risk by placing essentially a robot doing the chest compressions, and the paramedic that’s riding to the hospital can be safely restrained on the seat of the ambulance.”

Marcarelli said the next steps will be to perform a “product evaluation to determine the direction and then determine which direction we’re going to go in for the devices, and then we’ll have to go through our normal purchasing process to procure that.”

With the one-year period of performance requirement, the department will need to have selected its devices and have them on each of its apparatuses by June next year.