By Pam Witt-Hillen, ThedaStar fight nurse
It started with a single donation by siblings Pat Prill and Jon Wilsnack of Markesan in memory of their father last March. It ended in early October with the delivery of 18 brand new automated external defibrillator (AED) units to the Green Lake County Sherrif’s Department—one for each emergency vehicle in the department’s force. Current statistics say only 5-8 percent of people survive cardiac arrest outside the hospital setting. However, this survival percentage jumps to 70 percent when an AED is available.
Sheriff Mark Podol recognized that his deputies are only minutes away from cardiac victims when they need help. He spoke to his rotary club in Green Lake about the idea of raising money for needed AEDs, and “the campaign was off and running,” he said. Green Lake community members responded in force.
“It was a wonderful thing to be able to see this whole thing start with an idea and end with a brand new AED unit in each emergency vehicle!”
