McKinney | January 2025

Health & wellness

BY SHELBIE HAMILTON

BY MARY KATHERINE SHAPIRO

McKinney Fire Department launches cardiac arrest app empowering our community’s trained profession- als and citizens to save lives,” McKinney Fire Chief Paul Dow said in the release. What else?

Medical Director Chibuike Okoro explains IV hydration therapy Intravenous hydration therapy, a popular well- ness trend, involves the direct infusion of fluids, vitamins and minerals into the bloodstream. While it can provide rapid rehydration, its long-term health benefits remain largely unproven, said Dr. Chibuike Okoro, medical director of Hospital Medi- cine for Baylor Scott & White Medical Center-Irving. Okoro spoke to Community Impact about how IV therapy works, the potential risks and what indi- viduals seeking this treatment may need to know. Responses have been edited for length, clarity and style. How does IV therapy work? IV therapy is essentially a quick infusion of water in the form of saline, associated with some elec- trolytes, vitamins and other minerals, but it goes

directly into the bloodstream. It’s typically used for rehydration in the outpatient setting and has a variety of uses in the hospital. Are there health benefits to IV therapy? What are they? There is no research that really supports that IV vitamin hydration provides clear health benefits. Overall, there’s been an increase in interest in wellness, alternative medicine and fitness, and IV hydration has found its landing place within that. Why do you think IV therapy has become increasingly popular in recent years? The marketing behind it has been huge. You see a lot of celebrities doing it, and I think in general, there’s an increased interest in wellness, fitness and alternative medicine. Most commonly you see IV therapy promoted right after drinking alcohol or right after excessive exercise, and so it can really help with the symp- toms you feel from dehydration, fatigue, lethargy [and] headaches.

The McKinney Fire Department is working to improve the community’s cardiac arrest survivability. The department has implemented the GoodSam app, a platform that connects medically trained community members with people needing medi- cal assistance during a cardiac arrest. The details The app, which launched in McKinney on Dec. 1, is intended to quickly get help to individuals in need, Battalion Chief Ben Jones said at a Dec. 17 McKinney City Council meeting. First responders and individuals with CPR train- ing can register with the app, which will alert users of cardiac arrest emergencies occurring within a few hundred yards. Verified users will serve as cardiac arrest volunteers, and are able to provide chest compression or defibrillation to victims before emergency responders arrive. “By introducing the GoodSam app, we’re

Dispatch hold times for cardiac arrest events in 2024 The hold time refers to the time between a call being received and emergency responders heading to the incident.

The department has also worked to increase the community’s cardiac survivability through other means, including by decreasing the hold time for the city’s emergency dispatch, Jones said. The dispatch hold time indicates the time between dispatch receiving a call and emergency response crews leaving to respond, Jones said. The department worked to streamline the dispatch process and saw a roughly 45-second month-to- month decrease in hold times as a result. Department officials have also worked to increase the number of automated external defibrillators, or AEDs, throughout the city. The city had 82 defibrillators, and through a partner- ship with AVIVE, was able to add 150 more, Jones said.

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COURTESY BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. For a longer version, visit communityimpact.com .

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SOURCE: CITY OF MCKINNEY/COMMUNITY IMPACT

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