Tulsa Fire Department Unveils New Cardiac Monitors To Help Save Lives

The Tulsa Fire Department is getting several new cardiac monitors and defibrillators.

The department says the new equipment will give first responders more information, which could help save lives.

TFD responds to about 15 calls a day for chest pain. It says heart disease is rampant in Oklahoma, and these new devices will help in those situations by providing more information faster.

A table full of the new cardiac monitors and defibrillators will soon be issued to firefighters in town. They will replace the old units currently in use.

"These are a little bit lighter in weight, they are a different type of framework, they're not as large," said Justin Lemery with Tulsa Fire.

The size is smaller, but the capabilities of the new machines are growing.

The new monitors will be able to give first responders critical information while performing CPR.

"When someone's in cardiac arrest or their heart is stopped and we're doing compressions, we can see rhythms, we can see things going on with that individual—something we weren't able to do before," Lemery said.

Tulsa Fire Chief Michael Baker says the new machines are similar to those in hospital emergency rooms. He says it is important to keep devices like these up to date.

"We really are taking the cutting edge and moving forward quickly to train our paramedics so they have the best skills and the best equipment for Tulsans," he said.

Baker says the department spent $1.2 million to buy the new equipment. It has been saving up for the purchase.

"We were able to proactively budget for this unit in a previous fiscal year. We knew that this new technology was going to be coming onto the market," he said.

Firefighters say the information gathered on a patient using the new technology will be easier to transfer to a hospital once the patient arrives.

The company that makes the new monitors is currently teaching Tulsa firefighters how to use the devices. The new monitors will be issued to the department once all training is complete.