SMG announces 2012 award winnersStat PADS, the leading independent provider of Physician Oversight & Medical Direction nationwide, today announced it has awarded Cintas Corporation with its Heart Award, an annual award that recognizes businesses and organizations for their commitment to saving lives from Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA).

Nationally recognized for a wide variety of business services, few realize the impact that Cintas Corporation has had in promoting and simplifying the implementation of AED programs for various businesses, schools, healthcare facilities and places of worship across the nation. While the out-of-hospital national average for survival rate of victims of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) is 7%, clients who have adopted Cintas- AED program have achieved survival rates exceeding 70%. To date, over 200 lives have been saved through the use of a Cintas-provided AED.

Cintas’ AED program covers all the bases in ensuring its clients are ready to save lives, including consulting prospective clients face-to-face, providing training to the customer by the largest AHA certified trainer network, regularly servicing the equipment on-site, and providing Physician Oversight and post-event reviews in conjunction with Stat PADS-nationally certified physicians. “We’re very proud of the success our clients are having in saving lives, said Scott Garula, President and COO of Cintas First Aid and Safety. But the credit goes to them for taking the initiative to implement these programs to begin with, further demonstrating that safety and health is a commitment in their workplaces. Asked what the key(s) to achieving a higher rate of survival are, Garula stated, We very much believe in the comprehensive nature of the AED services we offer. It’s not just one element. We believe saving lives is an active, collective effort to be ready.

The Heart Award is an annual award that recognizes businesses and organizations that go above and beyond in their commitment to increase awareness, promote, assist and succeed in saving lives from Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA).