Media Advisory

Personal Injury Reduction Campaign Launch & National Strategy to Train Canadians in First Aid & CPR

(Friday, October 2, 2009) – A new national campaign is being launched to:
· heighten awareness of the devastating impact of personal injury in Canada,
· introduce new injury reduction strategies and
· significantly increase the number of Canadians, particularly young people, to become certified in first aid and CPR training.

Five national organizations will be present to officially launch it on October 7, 2009 as part of Safe Communities Day, at an event hosted by Safe Communities Halifax Regional Municipality.

Under the banner of Be Visible, this national collaborative strategy is being announced by the leading Canadian injury prevention organizations: Safe Communities Canada, Safe Kids Canada, SmartRisk Foundation and ThinkFirst Foundation of Canada in partnership with Canadian Red Cross.

Certification of Canadians in first aid and CPR training will reduce their risk of personal injury while contributing to their community to reduce the long-term effect of an injury. For Canada’s young people, proper training offers an opportunity to show the rest of our citizens the way to a better and even more caring country while obtaining an added skill-set to increase their qualifications in obtaining employment, enhance self-esteem and potentially save lives.

Dignitaries attending the designation ceremony include Halifax Regional Municipality Councillor Dawn Sloane, Safe Communities Canada President Paul Kells, Safe Kids Canada Executive Director Pamela Fuselli, SmartRisk Foundation President & CEO Bob Baker, ThinkFirst Canada Executive Director Rebecca Nesdale-Tucker and Canadian Red Cross Secretary General and CEO Conrad Sauvé.

Presentations will be made to students from Sir John A. Macdonald School who are part of Canada’s first Be Visible – Be Certified High School Fist Aid Response Team.

WHERE: Grand Parade, City Hall, Halifax, Nova Scotia
WHEN:   Wednesday, October 7, 2009
               12:00 P.M. – 1:00 P.M.

Safe Communities HRM focuses on injury prevention, whose mission is to make our city the safest place in to live, learn, work and play.

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Jeanette McPherson, Co-ordinator
Safe Communities Halifax Regional Municipality
(P) 902-490-6530
(c) 902-225-7432
mackayj@halifax.ca