Transforming the Lives of Homeless Families with CPR, AED and First Aid Training at Family Promise

“It was a great group of people to train. Their enthusiasm and excitement for learning this life saving skill was refreshing to see as they discussed best techniques and wanting to spread the knowledge with others.” Empowerment Team member, Mackenzie Thompson

What do you consider to be a caring act for the homeless? Giving back to the homeless starts with the simple act of caring for humanity and life on earth, and at the Disque Foundation, we have strived to make a difference in our local homeless community population for the past few years with free CPR and Basic Life Support training.

Did you know that for every age group, homeless persons are three times more likely to die of any disease or injury than the general population? Homeless individuals suffer the same illness, such as heart disease, HIV/AIDS, hypertension and diabetes, but at rates that are up to six times higher compared to other individuals. Furthermore, physical health conditions, such as heart complications and cancer, are more likely to lead to an early death for homeless individuals.

The Empowerment Team at the foundation has made it their mission to provide free CPR and AED training, to prevent unnecessary deaths from cardiac arrest and emergencies in the demographic that experiences it the most.

Two members of the team, Mackenzie Thompson and Lauren Diffendarfer, connected with Family Promise of Greater Indianapolis, in an effort to empower staff working there, to be equipped to save a life with CPR, AED and First Aid training. Together they trained 4 staff members on how to perform CPR, using training dummies and in person training. The group worked together on perfecting techniques and discussing possible emergency situations that could occur.

If you are an organization or company looking to receive in-person or virtual CPR training with Lauren, please click here!

Hope Munn, Program Manager at Family Promise of Greater Indianapolis, practices chest compressions.