MIKEYS OFFER A SECOND CHANCE WHEN SCA STRIKES IN OSHAWA  
THE MIKEY NETWORK
ARTICLE ON MIKEY DONATIONS
June 9, 2008

OSHAWA - Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) can strike anyone, anywhere, at any age, and the use of a defibrillator is the only definitive treatment that can offer victims a second chance at life – particularly during the first few minutes after the heart stops.

Two busy Oshawa locations recently received life-saving donations in the form of public-access defibrillators called MIKEYS, provided through The Mikey Network.

In May 2008, the Oshawa Senior Citizens Centres, now in its 40th Anniversary year, was presented with a MIKEY by the Durham Region Home Builders’ Association (DRHBA).

The MIKEY will be used in its Mobile Transportation program, thanks to Dan Adams, coach of the Seniors Slo-Pitch team who applied to DRHBA to sponsor the additional MIKEY for events held away from the Centres.

“One of our players collapsed during a game and died,” Adams says, “and it took 15 minutes for the ambulance to arrive. Having a defibrillator on hand might have made a difference.”

DRHBA (www.drhba.com) is the voice of the residential construction industry in Durham Region. The Oshawa Senior Citizens Centres (www.oscc.ca) is a not-for-profit agency that offers programs and services to adults at various Oshawa locations.

The second MIKEY unit was donated by Two Men and a Truck to the Oshawa Municipal Airport. The Oshawa franchisee Steve deBoer and Canadian Vice President of Development and Operations Dan Hopkins of Two Men and A Truck – Canada were on hand when Hugh Heron, President of Heathwood Homes and Chairman/Co-founder of The Mikey Network made the presentation to Airport Manager Steve Wilcox.

Each year in Ontario, more than 6,500 people experience SCA, which can strike without warning. Over 10 per cent of these cardiac arrests occur out of the home. The shock from a MIKEY can greatly increase a person’s chance at living if it is used within the first critical moments following the incident. A trained “target responder” using a MIKEY can improve survival rates by up to 50 per cent.

The Mikey Network was established by Heathwood Homes and The Heron Group in 2003 in memory of Mike Salem, a valued partner who died following SCA on a golf course in 2002. To date, The Mikey Network has raised over $1 million and has committed 400 MIKEYs in public locations across the GTA.

Visit www.mikeynetwork.com.