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Sandy Springs to deploy 200 volunteers with CPR, AED training

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Published  August 14, 2025 11:24pm EDT
Sandy Springs
FOX 5 Atlanta
City issuing defibrillators to some of its residents

City issuing defibrillators to some of its residents

Sandy Springs is issuing defibrillators to some of its residents. It's part of a new initiative to get help quicker to someone in cardiac arrest.

The Brief

    • Sandy Springs is the first city in Georgia to implement the 4 Minute Community program, equipping volunteers with CPR training and AEDs to respond to cardiac arrests within four minutes.
    • The initiative aims to train 200 volunteers by the end of the year, with 60 already participating, and is supported by the Northside Hospital Foundation, which purchased the first 103 AEDs.
    • The program addresses potential delays in emergency response due to factors like traffic, emphasizing the importance of rapid AED deployment to increase survival rates.

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. - Sandy Springs is putting lifesaving tools in the hands of its residents, launching a program aimed at getting help to cardiac arrest victims in just four minutes.

New Sandy Springs heart program

What we know:

The city is the first in Georgia to adopt the 4 Minute Community program, which equips citizen volunteers with CPR training and an Avive Connect automated external defibrillator, or AED. When a 911 call comes in for a suspected cardiac arrest, the system alerts AEDs within a four-minute radius of the emergency.

The initiative kicked off last week and already has 60 volunteers, with a goal of training 200 by the end of the year. 

AEDs in Sandy Springs

What they're saying:

Sandy Springs EMS Chief Patrick Flaherty said the city’s emergency response times are strong, but factors like traffic can cause delays.

"Being able to get an AED to someone and defibrillating them within four minutes is a key component to keeping people alive," Flaherty said.

Among the first volunteers was Richard O’Gorman, who now carries his AED almost everywhere.

"When I’m at home, it’s pretty close, so I can hear the alerts. When I go out in the car, it’s very easy to just put it in a bag and go with me," O’Gorman said.

He said the device is straightforward, offering step-by-step CPR and defibrillation instructions. "You get this alert, and it tells you the address of where the emergency is. You respond to the scene, you knock on the door, you got a little card, and we go in and try to help the patient," he said.

The 4 Minute Community in Georgia

Dig deeper:

The Northside Hospital Foundation purchased the first 103 AEDs for the program. The city is raising funds for the remaining 97, with plans to have all 200 deployed by year’s end.

The 4 Minute Community program operates in six locations nationwide, with Sandy Springs and Forsyth County as the only participants in Georgia.

The Source: FOX 5's Denise Dillon spoke with Sandy Springs EMS Chief Patrick Flaherty and volunteer Richard O’Gorman for this story. 

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