STUDENTS LEARN AND EARN VOLUNTEER HOURS

MISSISSAUGA, October 26, 2015 – Peel District School Board has announced its support for the Mikey Network’s “Young At Heart” mobile app.

Said Tony Pontes, Peel District School Board’s Director of Education and Secretary’ “this app is a phenomenal educational tool for students.  We’re proud to be a part of this initiative as it complements the Board’s commitment to promote healthy, active lifestyles for all students and staff and to ensure their safety.”

In 2014, the Mikey Network “made a gracious commitment to equip a working Mikey defibrillator in each Peel school and worksite…a device that in some cases can be the difference between life or death,” Pontes added.

With a free download from the Apple Store or Google Play, the Mikey Young At Heart app will deliver a life-saving lesson for high school students and provide volunteer hours needed to graduate.

The Mikey Young At Heart app uses videos and quizzes to make learning about CPR and handling Automatic External Defibrillators (AED) fun. The app will also allow students to log and organize their hours from other community service activities.  Best of all, students can use the app anywhere they take their smartphone, tablet or computer – it’s that easy.

For years, the Mikey Network has been a leader in putting life-saving automated external defibrillators (called MIKEYs) in schools across the province. Now Mikey wants to build on that connection – by connecting students to the Mikey app.

“We are all becoming more familiar with seeing defibrillators hanging on the walls of schools, arenas and offices. We have heard they’re easy to use – but there are still questions. Would I know what to do? Would I be able to use the defibrillator? Could I save a life? The Mikey app will give you the confidence to say YES to all those questions,” said Mikey Network President, Eva Naumovski.

The survival numbers are staggering when an emergency situation happens and there is a defibrillator available – and someone puts the life-saving machine to work. The odds of surviving from a sudden cardiac arrest are now as high as 75 per cent when a defibrillator is used in time. Nearly 7,000 incidences occur in Ontario each year, mostly in public places, and many to otherwise healthy young people. To date, there have been 28 recorded lives saved from a Mikey defibrillator alone.

“That’s the focus of the Mikey Network……to see defibrillators in as many locations as possible so they are easily accessible and easy to use, just like the Mikey App,” added Ms. Naumovski.

Our President Eva Naumovski was recently on NewsTalk 1010’s Tech Talk with Marc Saltzman discussing The Mikey Network’s mission and our brand new Mikey Young At Heart App.

Eva talked about how we’re engaging students in learning basic AED skills. The app has various courses that teenagers complete to gain the community service hours they need to graduate high school in Ontario.

Eva also talked about the 1800 MIKEY defibrillators we have placed in the community, as well as the 27 lives that have been Saved By A Mikey, including five who were saved in schools. She discussed the fact that when it comes to cardiac arrest, time is of the essence. EMS takes an average of eight minutes to arrive at a call, but sufferers lose 10% of their brain function every minute they are in cardiac arrest. That’s why making MIKEYs publicly accessible is so important.

You can listen to the interview below at the 12:00 minute mark.