Carrollton Fire Rescue (CFR), as a member of the Texas-based BEST EMS emergency medical control and continuing education organization, has been recognized as a Lighthouse Community by the Resuscitation Academy (RA), a global leader in cardiac arrest care.

The Lighthouse designation is given to communities that perform as “all-stars” when it comes to resuscitation from a cardiac arrest, according to the RA, and represent the best the world of resuscitation has to offer by serving as beacons to light the way for other communities.

“During a cardiac event, every second is critical,” Rex Redden, Carrollton Executive Director of Public Safety, said. “Carrollton Fire Rescue partners with BEST EMS, the North Texas Emergency Communications Center, and local businesses to improve the City’s commitment to protecting the lives of our citizens and continues to make Carrollton one of the safest places to live, work, and play.”

Through BEST EMS, CFR is one of 32 high-performing Fire/EMS and first responder organizations now considered the first Lighthouse Communities in the state of Texas. Many of those communities are right here in North Texas. RA’s membership is comprised of 3,000 alumni from 700 communities around the world. BEST EMS is one of only eight RA Lighthouse organizations across the nation.

BEST EMS’ mission is to ensure the provision of quality emergency medical services and prevention programs to improve the health and safety within the EMS system through a commitment to excellence. Some of the improvements across the organization include cardiac arrest care protocols, improved dispatch processes, high performance CPR, and the reduction of deployment times for the LUCAS chest compression device as well as promoting citizen CPR/AED programs, a local example of which is CFR’s PulsePoint deployed in December 2019.

RA members serve as mentors and resources, showing resuscitation leadership, excellence, and quality of care for cardiac arrest patients, and advocating for lifesaving resuscitation quality improvement operations. With roots in public health, academic medicine, and emergency medical services, the Resuscitation Academy partners with the best minds in resuscitation science to develop life-saving training workshops, share resources, and raise the bar on global resuscitation standards.

For more information on Carrollton Fire Rescue, visit cityofcarrollton.com/fire.