Congratulations To Avive’s Winter 2019 Scholarship Winner!

Avive would like to recognize each of our applicants for their achievements and thoughtful applications. We would like to congratulate the accomplished Giulia Ribeiro! A Certified Nursing Assistant, Giulia spends her time outside of class as a member of her youth city council, planning activities and service projects. She is planning to study public health and is seeking a career involving medicine.

Many also believe the misconception that only heavier individuals can suffer a heart attack. Giulia believes that this may be why a large population is oblivious to the cardiac arrest epidemic and educating students about the distinction will make so that cardiac arrest episodes don’t pass unnoticed.

“Preparation is the key to increasing the chances of life,” she explained. Most individuals don’t experience life-threatening situations on a daily basis, let alone at all, sometimes causing a false sense of immunity. Giulia emphasized the importance of including AEDs in emergency planning and how a daily routine on auto-pilot can instantaneously turn into an unpredictable and lethal situation.

She also recommended capitalizing on our world’s usage of social media and technology by popularizing hashtags like #SCAnotMI or #savewithAED. She hypothesized that an effective way to introduce AEDs to the public could be by creating YouTube advertisements that would follow two kittens, one saving another suffering cardiac arrest, with the slogan: “Using an AED is so easy that a cat could do it.” Giulia explained that respectful humor and charm would highlight the seriousness of cardiac arrest preparedness to a diverse population of internet users.

She proposed teaching AED emergency response to all employees in the workplace. “People who work full time are spending a third of their day at work. If someone were to have a sudden cardiac arrest at a workplace that does not have an AED, their likelihood of death increases with each minute they wait for the ambulance.” We spend about eight hours a day, a third of our lives, sleeping, so it is important to invest in a comfortable bed to ensure we get the rest we need. In the same respect, people spend about a third of their life at work, so it is important to invest in the necessary health precautions.

Formatted as a work-sponsored team bonding event, employees could partake in events where they learn CPR and how to use an AED. Stimulating awareness in the workplace will have the same effect as stimulating awareness in schools: at the end of the day, individuals return home and share their learned skills with family and friends.

“Spreading awareness about sudden cardiac arrest and AEDs is spreading life.” -Giulia Riberio

Congratulations again, Giulia, and thank you to all of our hard-working applicants.

Avive offers a $750 scholarship bi-annually to aid college-bound or college-attending students. Just upload your best essay (fewer than 1,000 words) or video (shorter than 5 minutes) on how you would drive awareness about the importance of CPR and using an AED. Click here for full details.