New York City Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly today announced that the NYPD has expanded its Public Access Defibrillator Program, an initiative that seeks to reduce mortality associated with out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. At this time, every precinct, Police Service Area and Transit District is equipped with an Automated External Defibrillator.

"By providing defibrillators at more than 100 locations across the city, the New York City Police Department is ensuring that victims of cardiac arrest have the greatest possible chance for survival," said Commissioner Kelly. "We have not only provided this essential equipment to every precinct, we have also established a complete training program to ensure that our officers are fully prepared to use it during an medical emergency."

An Automated External Defibrillator (AED) is an electrical device that is used to defibrillate a heart by applying electric shock to it. The NYPD launched the Public Access Defibrillator Program as a pilot program
in 1997. The Department provided portable defibrillators to the eight precincts with the highest occurrences of cardiac arrest.

Since the program began, officers have used the defibrillators on 82 cardiac arrest victims. In 16 cases, they managed to resuscitate the victim's heart. In four of those cases, the victims survived the cardiac arrest and were later discharged from the hospital.

In addition to precincts, PSAs, and Transit Districts, several other NYPD Units are equipped with defibrillators, including the Highway, Harbor, Aviation, and Emergency Service Units.