Sudbury doctors work to create a Northern City of Heroes

It's a scene we've all witnessed in the movies: a crowded public place when someone suddenly jumps up and asks if there is a doctor in the house.

Two Sudbury doctors are hoping to train northerners to respond, at least for medical issues involving CPR.

Dr. Sarah McIsaac and Dr. Rob Ohle are behind the Northern City of Heroes. Ohle says it's an initiative to encourage northerners to learn the basics of bystander CPR.

"Really, it's about increasing survival," he said. "It's about saving lives."

Ohle says administering CPR can be scary. He says there are many barriers preventing people from performing CPR.

"The most common one we hear is fear," he said.

"It's fear of hurting someone, especially if it's a loved one. And it's fear of doing it wrong."

To overcome those fears, Ohle and McIsaac are offering free CPR demonstrations and practice sessions during the month of May at Science North.

"We'll have multiple different simulation task trainers," McIsaac said.

"These are simulation mannequins that we ourselves practice on in the hospital."

As for how hard and fast to push on someone's chest when doing CPR, Ohle says it's best to remember a song with 120 beats per minute, such as Stayin' Alive by the Bee Gees or the popular children's song Baby Shark.

But at the end of the day, the goal is to get more people comfortable doing CPR.

"You can only help," he said. "If you do nothing, your chances of survival decreases by 10 per cent each passing minute."