Senate Bill No. 316

Senate Bill No. 316-Senators Porter, Augustine, Adler, Coffin, Jacobsen, James, Mathews, Neal, Raggio, Rawson, Regan, Schneider, Titus, Washington and Wiener

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AN ACT relating to educational personnel; requiring the boards of trustees of school districts to establish and carry out plans for the training and certification of certain teachers and other educational personnel in the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation; clarifying that teachers and other educational personnel who are certified in the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation are not liable for civil damages resulting from the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in good faith under certain circumstances; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

[Approved July 16, 1997]

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

Section 1. Chapter 391 of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto a new section to read as follows:
1. The board of trustees of each school district:
(a) Shall establish a plan for the teachers and other licensed educational personnel in the school district who teach or supervise pupils in physical education; and
(b) May establish a plan for the teachers and other licensed educational personnel in the school district who teach or supervise pupils in courses of study or activities other than physical education which involve a high risk that cardiopulmonary resuscitation will need to be administered during the course of study or activity,
to receive the training which is necessary for certification in the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
2. A plan established by the board of trustees pursuant to subsection 1 must:
(a) Comply with the guidelines established by the American National Red Cross or the American Heart Association for the certification of persons in the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation;
(b) Set forth the courses of study and activities offered at schools within the district other than physical education which involve a high risk that cardiopulmonary resuscitation will need to be administered during the course of study or activity, including, without limitation, laboratory sciences, vocational education, special education, competitive sports and the transportation of pupils; and
(c) Set forth an estimation of the time and resources necessary for all personnel of the district to obtain certification in the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
3. The board of trustees of each school district shall submit to the state board any plan that it establishes pursuant to subsection 1.
4. A teacher or other person who:
(a) Is licensed pursuant to this chapter; and
(b) Teaches or supervises:
(1) Physical education; or
(2) A course of study or an activity that the board of trustees of the school district in which the person is employed has identified as involving a high risk that cardiopulmonary resuscitation will need to be administered during the course of study or activity and for which the board of trustees has established a plan pursuant to subsection 1,
shall establish and maintain current certification in the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in accordance with the plan established by the board of trustees.
5. The board of trustees of a school district may enter into an agreement with a local fire department, a local law enforcement agency or a nonprofit organization to provide the training and certification required by the plan.
Sec. 2. NRS 41.500 is hereby amended to read as follows:
41.5001. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 41.505, any person in this state [,] who renders emergency care or assistance in an emergency, gratuitously and in good faith, is not liable for any civil damages as a result of any act or omission, not amounting to gross negligence, by him in rendering the emergency care or assistance or as a result of any act or failure to act, not amounting to gross negligence, to provide or arrange for further medical treatment for the injured person.
2. Any person in this state who acts as a driver of an ambulance or attendant on an ambulance operated by a volunteer service or as a volunteer driver or attendant on an ambulance operated by a political subdivision of this state, or owned by the Federal Government and operated by a contractor of the Federal Government, and who in good faith renders emergency care or assistance to any injured or ill person, whether at the scene of an emergency or while transporting an injured or ill person to or from any clinic, doctor's office or other medical facility, is not liable for any civil damages as a result of any act or omission, not amounting to gross negligence, by him in rendering the emergency care or assistance, or as a result of any act or failure to act, not amounting to gross negligence, to provide or arrange for further medical treatment for the injured or ill person.
3. Any appointed member of a volunteer service operating an ambulance or an appointed volunteer serving on an ambulance operated by a political subdivision of this state, other than a driver or attendant, of an ambulance, is not liable for any civil damages as a result of any act or omission, not amounting to gross negligence, by him whenever he is performing his duties in good faith.
4. Any person who is a member of a search and rescue organization in this state under the direct supervision of any county sheriff who in good faith renders care or assistance in an emergency to any injured or ill person, whether at the scene of an emergency or while transporting an injured or ill person to or from any clinic, doctor's office or other medical facility, is not liable for any civil damages as a result of any act or omission, not amounting to gross negligence, by him in rendering the emergency care or assistance, or as a result of any act or failure to act, not amounting to gross negligence, to provide or arrange for further medical treatment for the injured or ill person.
5. Any person who is employed by or serves as a volunteer for a public fire-fighting agency and who is authorized pursuant to chapter 450B of NRS to render emergency medical care at the scene of an emergency is not liable for any civil damages as a result of any act or omission, not amounting to gross negligence, by that person in rendering that care or as a result of any act or failure to act, not amounting to gross negligence, to provide or arrange for further medical treatment for the injured or ill person.
6. Any person who:
(a) Has successfully completed a course in cardiopulmonary resuscitation according to the guidelines of the American National Red Cross or American Heart Association;
(b) Has successfully completed the training requirements of a course in basic emergency care of a person in cardiac arrest conducted in accordance with the standards of the American Heart Association; or
(c) Is directed by the instructions of a dispatcher for an ambulance, air ambulance or other agency that provides emergency medical services before its arrival at the scene of the emergency,
and who in good faith renders cardiopulmonary resuscitation in accordance with his training or the direction, other than in the course of his regular employment or profession, is not liable for any civil damages as a result of any act or omission, not amounting to gross negligence, by that person in rendering that care.
7. For the purposes of subsection 6, a person who:
(a) Is required to be certified in the administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation pursuant to section 1 of this act; and
(b) In good faith renders cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the property of a public school or in connection with a transportation of pupils to or from a public school or while on activities that are part of the program of a public school,
shall be presumed to have acted other than in the course of his regular employment or profession.
Sec. 3. The provisions of subsection 1 of NRS 354.599 do not apply to any additional expenses of a local government that are related to the provisions of this act.
Sec. 4. On or before September 1, 1998, the board of trustees of each school district shall establish and submit to the state board of education the plans required pursuant to section 1 of this act.
Sec. 5. This act becomes effective upon passage and approval.
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