Although the price is high, the Missouri Students Association and the Residence Halls Association are working toward purchasing enough automated external defibrillators to have one in each residence hall.
“We’d like to add one to every residence hall, but we’re just trying to see what we can do financially right now,” RHA President Chris Rucker said.
AEDs cost about $1,200 each, according to a [previous Maneater article](https://www.themaneater.com/stories/2011/12/9/residential-life-msa-working-install-more-aeds-cam/). Other costs come with the devices, like insurance, maintenance and training of residential staff. MSA and RHA have teamed together to come up with that fund.
“It’s something that we think is a pretty big priority, so we’re looking for funding sources,” MSA Student Affairs vice-chairwoman Claire Kates said. “The biggest deterrent right now, honestly, is the cost because they are pretty pricey.”
Six of MU’s residence halls currently have AEDs: South, Hawthorn, Jones, Responsibility, Wolpers and McDavid. The devices are also located in Bingham Commons, the Residential Life Maintenance Center and the Defoe-Graham office area.
AEDs are small, portable devices that deliver an electric shock to the heart, according to the American Heart Association website. They can be used to restore a regular rhythm in a sudden cardiac arrest.
A victim of cardiac arrest’s chance of survival drops 7 to 10 percent for every minute an irregular heartbeat continues, according to the AHA, so proximity of an AED is crucial.
Rucker said his goal is to have an AED in each hall. At least, he would like each residence hall complex – like Hatch, Schurz and College Avenue –to continue to have one in the area.
“I think, in the long run, the investment is worth it for students’ safety,” Kates said.
MSA and RHA are sorting through their budgets to find ways to fund this project. Although they are open to outside funding, the two organizations are currently the only sources of money for the project.
“We’re not 100 percent sure,” Rucker said about where the funding will come from. “We’re kind of looking at our budgets right now and seeing where we can cut things, and things like that. We’re looking more at the end of the year (when) we can see what we’ll have left over in roll over.”
The organizations are hoping to use leftover money for the AEDs, Kates said. She said they’re also beginning to look at other possibilities to cover the costs.
“ResLife is looking into the Student Fee Capital Improvement Committee for a grant for next year,” she said. “We might also be looking for outside grants. We’re not sure. (Once we know) how much we’ll need, (and) after we can pool those resources together, we’re going to see if we can pool from those before we look for any outside funding.”
