You're on patrol, scouting out your area, when a motorist flags you down. You get out, and as you approach the scene, you see a middle-aged man lying on the ground. He is not breathing and appears lifeless. What do you do?

In the case of victim Mark Vollmar, the officer quickly grabbed an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) from his cruiser, gave him a shock and restored his heartbeat, all before the paramedics could arrive. Vollmar, who also happened to be an officer in the Muncie Police Department, survived and returned to work in a matter of weeks.

Deputy Daniel Hahn, the officer who rescued Vollmar, was initially opposed to police AED programs. "EMS doesn't do our work - I didn't think we should be doing theirs," he says in an article by Mary Newman. However, after seeing firsthand the benefits of an AED, Hahn became a strong advocate of the programs. "I want to do anything I can to save lives."

Thousands of officers across the country are recognizing the positive effects of AEDs, which are used to revive victims of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA). This medical condition affects hundreds of thousands of Americans each year. When a person goes into SCA, an electric shock from a defibrillator is the only way to save them. The sooner a victim receives a shock, the likelier they are to survive - but the window for an effective shock is extremely small.

As a first responder, chances are that you may encounter a situation similar to the one mentioned above. If you're first on the scene, it may be several minutes before additional help or an ambulance arrives. In the case of SCA, those precious minutes are the difference between life and death.

That's why the widespread use of AEDs is becoming so important. Anyone can be trained to use an AED. Unlike the more cumbersome manual defibrillators, AEDs are automatic, portable, and easy to use. The machines themselves make the decision to deliver a shock, eliminating guesswork on the part of the rescuer.

Learn even more about AEDs and Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Continue on or click any of the links below to go directly to that topic.