CARE Team Achieves Program’s First Cardiac Arrest Save in Texas

City Council recognized the first cardiac arrest save by community volunteers on the Carrollton CARE Team since staff officially launched the Avive^® 4 Minute Community^® program in August 2024. The save, which occurred in September 2025, is the first documented in Texas and the most thoroughly recorded success in Avive's 4 Minute Community^® history.

A presentation was made at the Tuesday, March 3 City Council meeting honoring the five members of Carrollton's CARE Team who arrived first on the scene to resuscitate the cardiac arrest patient. Others who were also celebrated included the emergency communications personnel involved in the 911 call; the Carrollton Police officers who arrived for additional support; the Carrollton paramedics who stabilized the patient; and the hospital staff who provided definitive care for the patient ꟷ representing the entire chain of survival needed to successfully achieve a save in the event of a sudden cardiac arrest.

The goal of the Avive 4 Minute Community^® program, a neighborhood-based emergency response initiative, is to put life-saving defibrillators into the hands of CPR/AED-trained volunteers so they may arrive at every suspected sudden cardiac arrest in the City within four minutes of 911 dispatchers receiving the call.

"Every second is critical during a cardiac event," Carrollton Fire Rescue Chief Michael Thomson said. "CFR already partners with the North Texas Emergency Communications Center (NTECC), local businesses, and area schools to improve the City's commitment to protecting the lives of our citizens with on-site CPR/AED training courses. The added dimension of service the Carrollton CARE Team provides in sudden cardiac arrest instances is invaluable and further continues to make Carrollton one of the safest places to live, work, and play."

About the Program
Carrollton's CARE Team is comprised of more than 100 resident volunteers, who joined to be of service to their family and their neighborhood, and 100 more are needed to ensure Carrollton's more than 37 square miles are sufficiently covered. Each member is trained in compression-only CPR, commits to maintaining their skills through quarterly training and periodic team meetings, and is then entrusted with a portable, lightweight Avive^® Connect AED^®. The unit can be mounted in a convenient place in the home or taken on-the-go throughout the day.

Each AED unit's integrated software is monitored by dispatchers at NTECC. As soon as sudden cardiac arrest is identified as the reason for a 911 call, Avive devices within one mile of the emergency are activated. The devices alert their owners and immediately map them to the emergency, giving turn-by-turn directions.

While high-quality CPR buys time, only a shock from an AED can restore a person's heartbeat and save their life. CARE Team members have the option to respond by accepting the alert on their AED, letting the dispatcher know they are on the way. The dispatcher is then able to see the unit approaching the scene and notify the caller help is arriving.

The 4 Minute Community^® program empowers citizens with the tools and training to bridge the gap in out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest incidents and delivers lifesaving intervention in an emergency before the arrival of professional help. By creating a network of trained citizens with Avive Connect AED^®s, the City is building a safer, more proactive community, ensuring there are caring neighbors ready to respond when someone needs lifesaving help.

About the Save
"I've taught CPR classes and seen firsthand in my work the importance of early defibrillation, and figured joining the CARE Team would be a good opportunity to be prepared with a portable AED, should the need arise in my neighborhood," CARE Team responder and CFR Firefighter/Paramedic Christopher Cralle said. "This event was a great reminder that the cardiac arrest chain of survival is made of individuals willing to help at a moment's notice. It felt good to play a small role in a successful resuscitation."

In the case of September's save, the patient's wife was able to quickly recognize the cardiac arrest, call 911, and begin CPR under the instruction of the NTECC dispatcher, Cralle said. Due to the quick activation of the CARE Team's AEDs, five members were able to respond and provide further assistance. CPD officers arrived on the scene as well, ready to continue CPR, when the patient regained a pulse. CFR arrived on the scene shortly thereafter, further stabilized the patient, and transported him to the hospital, and hospital staff provided specialized treatment allowing the patient to return home a few days after the event.

Learn more about the 4 Minute Community^® program and apply for Carrollton's CARE Team at cityofcarrollton.com/4minutecommunity or contact Brian Dickerson at [email protected] or 469-986-8677.