From the orange County Newsroom
In Summary:
The Orange County Medical Clinic has begun offering CPR demonstrations at its County Outreach Awareness Community Health (COACH) events to improve emergency preparedness. Led by an American Heart Association-certified instructor, the sessions focus on hands-only chest compressions and the importance of acting quickly during cardiac emergencies. Officials say the initiative is designed to reduce preventable deaths, strengthen public health outcomes, and ease strain on emergency services.
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The Orange County Medical Clinic has launched a proactive approach to providing residents with life-saving emergency preparedness skills by incorporating CPR demonstrations into its County Outreach Awareness Community Health (COACH) events. The goal is to empower residents with life-saving skills that can make the difference between life and death.
Related: Orange County Medical Clinic COACH team delivers nearly 3,000 free health screenings in 2025.
“The idea is centered on creating awareness around the importance of CPR and how initiating chest compressions before first responders arrive can save lives,” said Jessica Rodriguez, manager of the Orange County Medical Clinic (OCMC).
Recent studies from the Office of the Orange County Medical Director identified areas in Orange County where bystander-initiated CPR rates are low before EMS arrival.
“Increasing awareness and education around CPR can help improve those numbers and empower the community to take action during emergencies,” Rodriguez continued. “Just knowing basic chest compressions could potentially save someone’s life in the event of a cardiac emergency.”
An American Heart Association certified CPR instructor will lead the demonstrations at COACH events, explaining how to do chest compressions and the importance of CPR. Participants will not receive CPR certification, but will be provided with educational materials and links to the American Heart Association to pursue certification if they are interested.
Brittany Pickren, manager of OCMC’s COACH program, says these demonstrations are perfect for COACH events.
“A key component of the COACH program is education, which these demonstrations align with perfectly,” Pickren said. “We already provide people with important information about their physical health. Incorporating CPR will increase the clinic’s efforts to help people avoid health emergencies and unnecessary trips to local emergency departments.”
Rodriguez says OCMC leadership is exploring offering certified CPR courses to the community in the future to further enhance access to life-saving education.
“We already provide CPR certification classes for the Orange County Health Services staff,” Rodriguez said. “These public demonstrations support our broader goal of improving community health outcomes, reducing preventable deaths, strengthening emergency preparedness, and fostering a culture of education and prevention that ultimately leads to a healthier community and reduces the strain on emergency services.”
Anyone interested in a free health screening or participating in a CPR demonstration at a COACH event can visit www.ocfl.net and check the community calendar for CPR COACH events.
Key Points:
- CPR demonstrations are now part of COACH community outreach events.
- The initiative responds to data showing low bystander CPR rates in parts of Orange County.
- Participants learn hands-only chest compressions but do not receive certification.
- Educational materials and certification resources are provided through the American Heart Association.
- The clinic is exploring offering certified CPR courses to the public in the future.
