Save a Life CPR Training

02/21/2025

Narcan in Michigan

My name is Dean Dykstra of Save a Life CPR LLC. I have seen a bit of confusion on overdoses, and it is a question raised in many of my classes. I have compiled a bit of info on it. If you have more questions, feel free to contact me at savealife30.2@gmail.com.

In 2016, Michigan passed a Naloxone (Narcan) standing order law, which allows a pharmacist to dispense Naloxone without an individual prescription. The legislature passed MCL-Section 691.1503, which states, in part, “An individual who in good faith believes that another individual is suffering the immediate effects of an opioid-related overdose and who advocates an opioid antagonist to the other individual is not liable in a civil action for damages resulting from the administration.”
Narcan can be life saving, is not addictive, and it is available at no cost to anyone in Michigan. Many medical walk in clinics have it available to the public, counseling centers may have vending machines (free of charge), law enforcement usually carry it, many churches have it, there are many places to obtain it.
If administered to someone mistakenly believed to be actively overdosing, you would not be physically harming that person. However, there are physical side effects of the medicine that may still come about, the most frequent being that they may crap their pants, vomit, or both.
If administered to someone actively overdosing, be cautious, because a frequent response to the medication taking effect is that the patient will come out of it angry and hostile. Also, be aware of cross contamination. Some of these drugs are so incredibly strong that they can cause overdoses through skin contact, just by touching it with bare hands.
Ambulances also carry the medication, so they can also administer it when they arrive if you don’t have any.
Stay safe, stay calm, always call 911 immediately!

02/08/2025

What do I do? How can I help? Should I start CPR? Is it time to call for an ambulance? How can I be prepared if this happens again?
CPR and first aid classes are probably the only class you will ever take that you don’t want to use the knowledge gained, but if you are in a situation that requires the skills, you will be happy to have them!
Dean Dykstra from Save a Life CPR LLC provides onsite emergency medical training, both for medical professional certification, and for people with no training at all. Classes are set up to be understandable for all, and to have you leave with the knowledge on what to do and when to do it. Not just a boring class where you nod off watching a video, but real life situations with practical solutions. Boots on the ground CPR and first aid!
No driving, trying to find the class location, sitting for hours in uncomfortable chairs surrounded by strangers. Get a group together, call and schedule a class. We come to your home, office, or conference room at a convenient time for you. Take the class where you are comfortable, in a much better learning environment.

12/29/2024

In almost every response to medical emergencies, we are inflicting some pain in the body we are trying to help. Either the chest compressions that are snapping tendons and ligaments, and cracking ribs, or squishing that infant in order to clear the airway. If we are nice and gentle in these times, we are not helping anyone. Learn CPR, learn first aid, learn it until you can do it right and proper.

Jake Chapman, 17, was eating in the family kitchen when his heart stopped. His mom, Rachel, called 911. His dad, Chad, started CPR Chad, a middle school teacher who'd been trained in CPR for years, knew what he needed to do – be forceful with compressions to mimic the rhythm of the heart – but he feared hurting his son.

"Then I looked down and saw his gray skin, his blue lips, his blue eyelids," Chad said. "I started making the compressions more and more forceful because I knew it was a life-or-death situation."

In less than four minutes, paramedics arrived and took over, shocking Jake's heart twice to bring back a sustainable rhythm.

Only after Jake heard his parents sharing in an interview their side of what happened did he realize the role his father's quick thinking and CPR knowledge had played in his survival. He immediately texted his dad: "Thank you for saving my life."

The family has become strong advocates for everyone to learn CPR. "My message for people is that whether you're trained or not, you have to do something," Chad said. "The only wrong is to not do anything at all."