Acworth First Southeastern City to Earn HEARTSafe Designation

The City of Acworth has earned the internationally recognized HEARTSafe Community designation through the American Heart Association. The city is the first in the Southeast to receive the title.

HEARTSafe Community is a public health initiative to help more people survive sudden out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, according to a press release from the city. This program focuses on the “chain of survival” as described by the AHA. 

Acworth has worked to meet this criteria throuch widespread CPR instruction, public access to defibrillators, and aggressive protocols for first responders and area hospitals.  

The designation is a result of partnerships between the city and Metro Atlanta Ambulance Service, which donated five defibrillators; Chattahoochee Technical College, which assisted with training aids and instructors; and Health and Safety Solutions, which donated instructors at no cost to the city. 

Kim Watt, with the Acworth Parks and Recreation Department, assisted with instructing classes, and Captain Tony Bailey of the Acworth Police Department spearheaded the year-long endeavor while teaching nearly 300 city workers and residents.