A heart emergency and trauma care training program, sponsored by JFC Naples in cooperation with the Naples, Italy-based Federico II University School of Medicine and Surgery, was recently conducted. (Photos by French Navy Chief Petty Officer Sébastien Laurent)
NAPLES, Italy – A heart emergency and trauma care training program, sponsored by Allied Joint Force Command Naples in cooperation with the Naples, Italy-based Federico II University School of Medicine and Surgery, was conducted at JFC Naples, Nov. 13 to Dec. 12, 2017.
A total of 80 military and civilian staff members from JFC Naples earned certificates at the conclusion of the Basic Life Support and Early Defibrillation Course.
"Thanks to these courses, the hearts of JFC Naples will be better protected,” said Italian Army Colonel Giancarlo Turco, Base Support commander at JFC Naples. "The aim of this initiative is to make one of the region’s most important nerve centers, manned by hundreds of personnel, a safer place.”
Dr. Maurizio Santomauro, the scientific coordinator at Federico II University School of Medicine and Surgery, said that with more than 20 defibrillators located on its grounds, JFC Naples is a perfect example of how a complex facility should be prepared.
"The semiautomatic defibrillator has been proven to be a life saver in many cases of heart attack,” said Santomauro. "Waiting for the emergency service to arrive on the spot, it is imperative to immediately attach the defibrillator to the person suffering a heart condition as this dramatically increases the person’s chances of survival.”
Santomauro went on to say the end goal is to make as many devices as possible available in densely populated facilities like the one at the Italian NATO command’s headquarters. He emphasized the defibrillator is a device that can be used by personnel with no medical training.
"The synergy between the university representatives and the Army represents the current cultural change,” said Dr. Carla Riganti, legal medical doctor of the University of Naples Federico II. "The University of Naples offers its professional knowledge to apply the medical intervention in accordance with the international rules.”
According to the course organizers, the training given to personnel from JFC Naples was based on the American Heart Association and International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation’s most recent guidelines.
"The Department of Medicine of the University of Naples Federico II always supports any kind of professional initiatives,” said Professor Luigi Califano, chairman of the Medical School of the University of Naples and former head of the Department of Medicine of the University of Naples Federico II. "The Basic Life Support and Early Defibrillation Course is the buttonhole of these initiatives.
Photos of the course ceremony can be found here.
Story by JFC Naples Public Affairs Office