Cardiac Ready Community Program

During a cardiac emergency, every second...every minute that passes without CPR or AED use can mean the difference between life and death. In South Dakota (SD), it can take the ambulance 30 minutes to respond in the most remote areas of the state.

Is your community prepared to respond to a cardiac emergency?

The Cardiac Ready Community (CRC) Program will help educate, equip, and empower local community members to be better prepared and more confident in helping someone experiencing a cardiac event prior to the ambulance arriving. Start the conversation in your community and help assemble a CRC Team!

The CRC Team works together to create a System-of-Care where community members, city officials, business owners, dispatchers, emergency medical services (EMS), police, fire, and hospital staff all work together. The program defines what a community team must do to receive the Cardiac Ready Community Designation.

Submit a Letter of Intent to the SD Department of Health when your community is interested in achieving designation.