All Head Coaches are required to be certified in CPR and the use of an AED, and all assistant coaches are encouraged to be certified. The league offers this training at no cost to the coaches. 

Why have a PAD program?
The American Heart Association has determined that 250,000 people die each year from cardiac arrest. Ventricular fibrillation (VF) is the most common arrhythmia that causes cardiac arrest. Defibrillation is the only known treatment for VF. It is also the only known treatment for VF caused by commotio cordis. (1)

What is Commotio Cordis?
Commotio Cordis is a syndrome that results from a blunt impact to the chest which leads to cardiac arrest. It is a poorly recognized and underreported event that happens to healthy young athletes as a result of a low-energy, non-penetrating blow to the chest. Commotio Cordis does not result solely from the force of a blow. It is largely the result of the exquisite timing of the blow during a narrow window within the repolarization phase of the cardiac cycle.

Young athletes are especially at risk because of the pliability of their chest walls. Resuscitation of the victims of commotio cordis is seldom successful. Time is a critical factor after the onset of the event. Early cardiopulmonary resuscitation and especially early defibrillation is essential.

To prevent deaths from Commotio Cordis it is necessary to be properly trained in the recognition of this event and the timely response. Basic life support training and access to automatic external defibrillators (AED's) are crucial to achieve this goal. (2)