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ISHPEMING -- According the American Heart Association, EMS treats 300,000 victims of cardiac arrest each year.

Less than eight percent of those people survive.  However, survival statistics of Bell EMS patients could improve with the help of a new piece of CPR equipment.

Its name is Lucas 2, and for a patient experiencing cardiac arrest, it could be their new best friend.

Lucas 2 can perform uninterrupted, high quality CPR at 100 beats per minute--that's the most effective rate for chest compressions according to the American Heart Association.  It's also a rate near impossible to maintain for a long period of time by a paramedic doing CPR manually.

"Weaker people aren't as effective doing high-quality CPR," says paramedic Jim Bourgeois.  "They have to pause when bringing somebody out of a house or into an ambulance."

Lucas 2 continues compressions for about 45 minutes per battery--Bell EMS has two batteries--and that time is vital for some patients.  The ambulance ride can be as long as an hour for patients out in Republic.

Lucas 2 is about $15,000, and the cost to run the machine is low.  The time to have it up and running...just seconds.

"You place the short board under their back, connect device, turn it on, and start it," Bourgeois said.

Bell EMS has already used the machine in real life situations, and it's made a big difference for the two paramedics available in the ambulance.

"Anytime we can get a device that will help us out--one person can give medication and one can do ventilations--it's a big help," says paramedic and EMT John Richards.