HAVERHILL, Mass. -- Chelmsford-based Zoll Medical has created a CPR machine that's helping paramedics save lives.

NewsCenter 5's Liz Brunner reported that the American Heart Association updated its CPR guidelines last year stressing the importance of chest compressions, calling on first responders to "push hard and push fast."

When a person goes into cardiac arrest, every second their heart is not beating is another second blood is not flowing to vital organs. That's why chest compressions done during CPR are so important.

"If it's not steady, you're not getting adequate blood flow," said paramedic John Hebert. "So if that compression isn't happening, the outcome isn't going to be good."

Haverhill paramedics Hebert and Craig Clough have saved many lives doing CPR, but both admitted the manual chest compressions are physically demanding and often inconsistent.

"It's human error. After a certain amount of time when you're doing CPR, you're not doing as rapid rate as you should be, the depth of CPR is less and it becomes essentially ineffective CPR and unfortunately, patients die," Clough said.

But now, paramedics have help. The AutoPulse cardiac support pump gives steady, strong, continuous compressions to a larger area than manual CPR, enabling paramedics to focus on other life-saving treatments.

"It frees up hands. It allows us to do our job better. It allows us to take care of the other things we need to take care of -- intibating patients, starting IVs, giving medications," Hebert said.

The AutoPulse continues compressions when humans would have to stop, including moving the patient downstairs or in narrow passages.

"This device not only can, but it has, saved lives," said Haverhill Mayor James Fiorentini.

Haverhill is the first city in the state to equip all first responders with the device and it's proving to be a good decision -- five lives were saved in the first week alone.

"I would hope to say that in the next few years, the AutoPulse will become the standard of care for all pre-hospital providers," Clough said.

Zoll Medical will host a demonstration of the AutoPulse at the Museum of Science in Boston on Friday.