Travelers who have time to spare before their flight departs can learn Hands-Only CPR in about five minutes at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, where a new interactive kiosk will teach this effective bystander CPR skill. The airport is one of seven U.S. locations where a Hands-Only CPR training kiosk will reside, courtesy of the American Heart Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia Foundation and the Amerigroup Foundation.

Every year, more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of the hospital and more than 20 percent occur in public places like airports, casinos and sporting facilities. The Hands-Only CPR education available at each kiosk helps users understand how they can immediately help a person who experiences a cardiac emergency outside of a hospital.

Each kiosk has a touch screen with a brief video that shows how to perform Hands-Only CPR followed by a practice session and a 30-second CPR test. With the help of a practice manikin, or a rubber torso, the kiosk gives feedback about the depth and rate of compressions and proper hand placement – factors that influence the effectiveness of CPR.

The kiosk sits on Concourse A between gates A11 and A15, at the world’s most traveled airport. ATL made history last year when it became the first airport in the world to serve more than 100 million passengers in a single year.

“Cardiac arrest remains a leading cause of death in the United States, and survival depends on immediately receiving CPR from someone nearby,” said Dr. Herman Taylor, president of the American Heart Association’s Greater Southeast Board of Directors. “Although in-person training is still the best way to learn the skills necessary for high-quality CPR, the kiosk will provide additional training that could make a difference and save the life of someone you love.”

The other airports with kiosks include Chicago O’Hare International and Indianapolis International; in coming weeks kiosks will be added at Las Vegas’ McCarran International and Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall. Two additional kiosks will reside at the Global Center for Health Innovation in Cleveland, Ohio and in Washington, D.C.

“About 90 percent of cardiac arrest victims die, often because bystanders don’t know how to start CPR or are afraid they’ll do something wrong,” said Jeff Fusile, president of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia. “Bystander CPR, especially if administered immediately, can double or triple a cardiac victim’s chance of survival, which is why the Hands-Only CPR education available at the kiosk is so valuable. In just a matter of a few minutes, travelers will learn a skill that can potentially make a difference in the lives of those they love most as well as others.”

The two simple steps of Hands-Only CPR are: if a bystander sees a teen or adult collapse, he or she should first call 9-1-1, then push hard and fast in the center of the chest to the beat of “Stayin’ Alive,” which has the perfect cadence for proper CPR.

“The kiosks will help travelers understand how simple it is to perform the two steps of Hands-Only CPR, which will hopefully help reduce some of the trepidation that people have about performing bystander CPR,” said Michael Privette, executive director of the Metro Atlanta American Heart Association. “After completing the kiosk training, we hope people will feel empowered knowing they are taking the first steps in learning a critical skill.”

“The Amerigroup Foundation is proud to team with the American Heart Association to bring this innovative method to learn a lifesaving skill to millions of travelers that come through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport,” said Fran Gary, president of Amerigroup Georgia. “Through this collaboration and ongoing campaign the foundation is working to contribute to the American Heart Associations’ work to double survival rates from cardiac arrest by 2020.”