Rural areas lack emergency equipment

To the editor:

Where you live shouldn't determine whether you live.

While residents in Iowa's urban areas benefit from systems of care that improve outcomes for heart attack patients, our rural areas are suffering from a lack of emergency equipment and statewide coordination of care.

The Senate has approved a one-time appropriation of $1.5 million to invest in 12-lead ECGs for rural EMS transportation vehicles through Mission: Lifeline. This equipment will help our local EMTs identify the deadliest type of heart attack (STEMI), send results directly to a local physician, and transport the patient to a hospital that can administer the most effective treatment to reduce deaths and improve recovery.

Cardiovascular diseases (including stroke) are the No. 1 killer of Iowans. As a mother with a child who was born with a heart defect, I want to make sure that if I or one of my loved ones suffers a heart attack, I can count on our emergency medical professionals to have the equipment and training needed to provide the best possible care, regardless of where we are located.

An investment in Mission: Lifeline can do that. Contact your legislator and ask them to support a one-time appropriation of $1.5 million for Mission: Lifeline. Our lives, and the lives of our loved ones, depend on it.

Maria Sanchez-Masi

Robins