RICHMOND, Va. January 5, 2025 – The American Heart Association, a global force changing the future of health for all, will move the state’s first Mobile CPR Training Kiosk to Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). The Hands-Only CPR education available at the kiosk will help users understand how they can immediately help a person who experiences a cardiac arrest outside of a hospital.
The kiosk features a touch screen with a video program that provides a brief introduction and overview of Hands-Only CPR, followed by a practice session and a 30-second test session. With the help of a practice manikin, or a rubber torso, the kiosk gives feedback about the depth and rate of compressions and proper hand placement – factors that influence the effectiveness of CPR. The entire training takes five minutes or less.
“We are excited to host the American Heart Association’s CPR Kiosk in a well-traveled area of our campus, where community members, students and faculty can all learn and practice this vital skill,” said Aaron J. Hart, Ed.D., vice president of student affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University. “We look forward to creating a campus of lifesavers like Nyla Harris, a VCU pre-med student who saved a life in a Midlothian restaurant earlier this year.”
Sponsored by Genworth and its subsidiary CareScout, the kiosk will be located in the VCU student commons, where students and faculty are invited to learn Hands-Only CPR and share the skills they learn with their loved ones.
“Cardiac arrest remains a leading cause of death in the United States, and survival depends on immediately receiving CPR from someone nearby,” said Lewanda Sims-Gallimore, senior director of community involvement at Genworth. “We’re so proud to support the state’s first CPR kiosk and look forward to seeing the impact it will make on VCU students and staff in the coming months.”
More than 350,000 people experience cardiac arrests outside of a hospital each year in the United States, including 23,000 children. Unfortunately, 90% of the people who have a cardiac event outside of a hospital do not survive. CPR is a critical skill that kids as young as nine years old can learn.
According to recent studies, Black adults and other historically underrepresented racial and ethnic groups are less likely to receive bystander CPR. Additionally, women are 22% less likely to receive CPR and survive a cardiac arrest than men due to fear and other factors including a lack of knowledge.
“In the kiosk’s first three and a half months at The Market at 25h, it trained nearly 500 people in Hands-Only CPR,” said Michelle Nostheide, executive director, American Heart Association Central Virginia. “Our goal is for at least one person in every household to know the lifesaving skill of Hands-Only CPR and we’re excited to bring the kiosk to VCU to reach a new group of people who can become lifesavers in the community.”
The two simple steps of Hands-Only CPR are: if you see a teen or adult collapse, first call 9-1-1. Then push hard and fast in the center of the chest to the beat of 100-120 beats per minute. Songs like “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees’ and other popular songs have the right tempo for chest compressions during Hands-Only CPR.
The American Heart Association will host a ribbon cutting ceremony for the CPR Kiosk in the VCU University Student Commons on Wednesday, January 7, 2026. For more information, please contact Audry Dubon at audry.dubon@heart.org.
To learn more about Hands-Only CPR and how to save a life, visit www.heart.org/nation.
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About the American Heart Association
The American Heart Association is a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives. Dedicated to ensuring equitable health in all communities, the organization has been a leading source of health information for more than one hundred years. Supported by more than 35 million volunteers globally, we fund groundbreaking research, advocate for the public’s health, and provide critical resources to save and improve lives affected by cardiovascular disease and stroke. By driving breakthroughs and implementing proven solutions in science, policy, and care, we work tirelessly to advance health and transform lives every day. Connect with us on heart.org, Facebook, X or by calling 1-800-AHA-USA1.
For Media Inquiries: 214-706-1173
Audry Dubon: audry.dubon@heart.org
For Public Inquiries: 1-800-AHA-USA1 (242-8721)
heart.org and stroke.org
