Weil Institute member helps push new bills strengthening AED and CPR training requirements in Michigan schools
Weil Institute’s partnership with the NFL Smart Heart Sports Coalition empowers new legislation implementing emergency cardiac arrest response plans statewide.
Contact:
Katelyn Murphy
Marketing Communications Specialist, Weil Institute
mukately@med.umich.edu
This article features content adapted from a press release originally posted on Michigan.gov.
ANN ARBOR, MI – In a touchdown for heart health in Michigan, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed a pair of bipartisan bills that will better protect students and young athletes from sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) fatalities.
Dr. Bradley Uren (left) with Governor Whitmer. Photo courtesy of Michigan Medicine.
The new legislation, signed as part of the National Football League (NFL) draft ceremony in Detroit, will require schools to develop comprehensive emergency cardiac arrest response plans and will also make CPR and AED certification mandatory for coaches. These policies were empowered through the concerted effort of the nearly 40 leading athletics, advocacy and healthcare organizations that comprise the NFL’s Smart Heart Sports Coalition, including the University of Michigan Max Harry Weil Institute for Critical Care Research and Innovation.
Dr. Bradley Uren, a member of the Weil Institute and Clinical Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, played a key role in getting the new bills in front of the Governor and was present at the signing ceremony as a representative of U-M and Weil.
“When these bills were being considered in Michigan, I was positioned to help given my history working with the many groups supporting them, I have worked with the American Heart Association for the last several years and have also worked on prior CPR and cardiac arrest policy,” said Dr. Uren. “These laws are common sense steps, backed by evidence, that will save lives.”
"These laws give student athletes, and anyone else, in these spaces a better chance of survival in the event of cardiac arrest. I applaud the legislature and the governor for moving so quickly to put these important protections in place for Michigan schools."
Bradley Uren, MD
Clinical Associate Professor, Emergency Medicine
University of Michigan
Cardiac arrest occurs when the heart suddenly stops beating effectively, cutting off blood flow to essential organs like the brain. According to the American Heart Association, more than 350,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) occur each year. Unfortunately, only about 40% of people who experience an OHCA get the immediate help that they need before professional help arrives.
Founded after the life-saving emergency care provided to Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who experienced a sudden cardiac arrest on the field in January of 2023, the NFL’s Smart Heart Sports Coalition is a united front advocating for the nationwide adoption of evidence-based policies to help improve athletics-related SCA response efforts and outcomes. The Weil Institute joined Smart Heart in October of 2023 in a move championed by Dr. Robert Neumar, Weil Institute member and Chair of Emergency Medicine.
“We envision a future state where it is the expectation that athletes will survive sudden cardiac arrest, and believe this can be achieved through advocacy, education, training, research, and innovation,” said Neumar. “It will take a team effort, and we are excited to be on the team."
“These laws give student athletes, and anyone else, in these spaces a better chance of survival in the event of cardiac arrest,” said Dr. Uren. “I applaud the legislature and the governor for moving so quickly to put these important protections in place for Michigan schools.”
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The team at the Max Harry Weil Institute for Critical Care Research and Innovation is dedicated to pushing the leading edge of research to develop new technologies and novel therapies for the most critically ill and injured patients. Through a unique formula of innovation, integration and entrepreneurship that was first imagined by Weil, their multi-disciplinary teams of health providers, basic scientists, engineers, data scientists, commercialization coaches, donors and industry partners are taking a boundless approach to re-imagining every aspect of critical care medicine. For more information, visit weilinstitute.med.umich.edu.