By Evelyn C. Diao
The Philippine Heart Association recently finished its 2nd National CPR Day on Thursday, July 17, 2025, with a nationwide mass cardiac pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training, marking the 10th anniversary of the “CPR-Ready PH” campaign. This monumental event aims to empower Filipinos as immediate first responders, bolstering the nation’s capacity to save lives in sudden cardiac emergencies.
The main celebration, themed “ZapPinas 2025: First Responder Team, sa CPR Win na Win! (CPR-ready na ba ang Barangay mo?)”, converged at Nangka High School in Marikina City from 8:00 AM to 12:00 NN. This Marikina venue served as the “Nerve Center” of the celebration, which featured an “Usapang Puso sa Puso” format and was streamed live on the Philippine Heart Association (PHA) Facebook page.
Led by the Philippine Heart Association (PHA) Council on CPR, in collaboration with the Marikina City Government and Nangka High School, the event trained an estimated 600 participants at the Marikina hub alone. Attendees included teachers, students, policemen, firemen, Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (DRRMO) field staff, Barangay Health Workers (BHWs), Barangay Tanod, as well as representatives from print and online media and Mowelfund staff.
Beyond Marikina, the spirit of “ZapPinas 2025” will resonate across the archipelago, with 13 PHA Chapters orchestrating auxiliary celebrations and training sessions in Northern Luzon, Cagayan Valley, Baguio-Benguet, Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, Bicol, Cebu, Western Visayas Panay, Western Visayas Occidental, Eastern Visayas, North Mindanao, South Mindanao-Davao, Zamboanga Peninsula, and the National Capital Region. Each chapter will have dedicated field reporters to capture the national scope of the initiative.
A Decade of Dedication: From Vision to National Observance
The 2nd National CPR Day came on the heels of a presidential declaration in March 2024, when President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. officially declared July 17 of every year as National CPR Day. This institutionalizes a decade of relentless effort by the PHA, which launched its ambitious “CPR-Ready PH” campaign in July 2015. The campaign’s twin goals: to bring CPR knowledge to every Filipino home and to transform the Philippines into a truly “CPR-Ready Country.”
The journey to this milestone has been marked by significant achievements:
- Legislative Milestones: The “CPR Act” (RA 10871), enacted on July 16, 2016, mandates basic CPR training in schools. This law was significantly inspired by the tragic case of basketball legend Samboy Lim, whose legacy continues to fuel the advocacy for widespread CPR proficiency. In a forward-looking move, Senator Lito Lapid recently refiled the Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Bill in July 2025, which aims to mandate AED placement in public spaces and increase public awareness of their life-saving role.
- International Recognition: In October 2024, the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) hailed the “amazing” history of the CPR-Ready PH campaign and the “Samboy Lim Law,” during a presentation by PHA Council on CPR Chair Dr. Don Robespierre Reyes at the ILCOR Members’ Meeting in Taipei. Dr. Reyes was subsequently elected ILCOR Treasurer, further elevating the Philippines’ role in global resuscitation efforts. Dr. Reyes is also slated to discuss the CPR-ReadyPH’s milestones at the ASEAN Federation of Cardiology Congress in Penang, Malaysia, on July 18, 2025 – a first for the PHA.
- Strategic Partnerships: The CPR-Ready PH campaign has forged strong alliances with key government agencies and organizations, including the Department of Health (DOH), Senate, Congress, local government units (such as Ormoc, Balanga, and Vigan), Department of Tourism (DOT) through its “CPR on Wheels on Wings” initiative, Camp Crame, Camp Aguinaldo, and the Philippine College of Emergency Medicine (PCEM). In October 2024, a consultative meeting between the DOT, PHA, and PCEM established CPR and AED readiness as prerequisites for DOT accreditation, with clear guidelines from PHA on CPR and AED, and from PCEM on emergency medicine.
- Advocate Champions: The campaign continues to garner support from prominent figures, with Congressman Richard Gomez reaffirming his commitment as a CPR Champion and CPR-Ready PH Ambassador in August 2023.
As the Philippines celebrates its 2nd National CPR Day and the 10th anniversary of the CPR-Ready PH campaign, the focus remains on the critical need for every Filipino to be prepared to act in a cardiac emergency. While significant strides have been made, challenges remain, particularly with the Department of Education’s yet-to-be-fully-implemented nine-year-old CPR Act.
The lead organizations and their allies remain steadfast in their mission: to ensure that the Philippines not only celebrates National CPR Day, but truly becomes a CPR-ready nation, where every citizen has the power to save a life.
#ZapPinas2025 #NationalCPRDay #CPRMakesADifference #CPRReadyPH
