Emergitek: First Responder Family Helps Others Respond Quickly and Skillfully 

Being a first responder is synonymous with being “on the go” and if you add taking care of your family into the mix, the word “busy” takes on another meaning entirely. Medical professionals are required to be re-certified in their lifesaving skills every two years and with such busy lives, this deadline can sneak up on them easily. Emergitek in Chico is ready to help busy professionals with those certification deadlines – even if one or more of those deadlines is today!

Emergitek’s high tech manikins provide immediate, accurate feedback that helps first responders upgrade skills rapidly, reducing recertification time from a day or more to around two hours. Photo credit: Emergitek.

The latest technology provides two-hour CPR Certification

Community CPR classes have been serving people well for decades but, with our world’s ever-increasing faster pace, professionals are not always able to set aside time for a Saturday class that takes half a day or, even more difficult, a class that takes all weekend. Danielle Hilson, a former first responder, and her husband, Dave a current first responder with 27 years of training and experience, both with very hectic lives, were inspired to start their business, Emergitek, in 2023 to help busy professionals.

“What if you suddenly realized your certification is due tomorrow?” Danielle says. “We see that all the time with nurses and doctors and they could get pulled off the schedule with expired certifications. The good news is that with Emergitek, for those who live in Chico or have access to one of our mobile units, people can have an email copy of their certification in just about two hours’ time, with a mailed copy to follow.”

Emergitek is an innovative new company fully backed by the American Heart Association. Their Chico office contains two units to train and certify individuals in basic life support (BLS), cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) and pediatric advanced life support (PALS). Individuals can schedule a time and access the room with a code. “It’s an introvert’s dream,” Danielle says.

You might ask where the accountability comes in. “We have the most advanced equipment from the American Heart Association’s Resuscitation Quality Improvement (RQI), program.” Danielle says. “Our units provide real-time feedback so that you can be comfortable with your skillset.”

Advanced manikins provide lifesaving feedback

The technology embedded in the Emergitek manikins alert the client if they need more air in the bag valve mask (BVM) or more force in their chest compressions. Indicators are harder to measure for a person teaching a class. The computer knows exactly how much air and compression is needed to save a life and provides feedback to increase the quality of the learner’s skills. “This is a groundbreaking new approach to maintaining competence in CPR,” says Danielle.

The American Heart Association reports that more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of the hospital each year. Immediate CPR (an emergency lifesaving procedure performed when the heart stops beating) can double or triple the chances of survival after cardiac arrest. A high level of skill is crucial for CPR to be effective, often employing bone breaking compressions.

Danielle reports that when Emergitek’s type of equipment was used in a study with nursing students, “there was a 281% increase in BVM skills and an 83% increase in compression skills.”

First Responders motivated from the heart

Dave and Danielle, as first responders and parents, know what it is like to juggle families and careers and they love the idea of helping professionals improve their skills and get certified as quickly as possible. Danielle, a retired city firefighter’s daughter, met Dave, a city firefighter, while she was attending an EMT certification class at the El Medio Fire Department.

“Before meeting, we both had a heart for the firefighters who gave their lives in New York City on 9/11.” Danielle says. “Dave, who grew up in Oroville, was hired by the FDNY (Fire Department of New York) directly out of school and chose the second academy option, starting at a later date. If he had chosen the first option, he would have been working on 9/11. Meanwhile, as a firefighters’ daughter, the loss of firefighters’ lives on 9/11 really hit me hard. I had gotten a tattoo on my foot to memorialize them.”

That day at the EMT class, Dave was helping with the palpitation station. “That was not his comfort zone,” Danielle says with a laugh. “But no one else volunteered to do it.” Danielle offered to be the subject and Dave noticed the tattoo on her foot referencing the 343 firefighters who died on 9/11. Dave asked Danielle about the tattoo and the rest is history. Saving lives through technology and innovation continues to be a mutual passion for them both.

Several training options makes recertification easy

Emergitek offers a few options to make training more accessible for professionals. Their Chico Emergitek Skills Testing location, 75 Declaration Drive #6, is available for individuals by appointment only from 9am-6pm Monday through Friday and 10am-3pm on Saturdays. They also have suitcase size mobile RQI Go Stations employers can rent, making it convenient for employees to roll through during the day for their re-certifications. They also provide private group training. Visit emergitek.com or call (530) 514-735 for more information.