Thanks to a campaign by the London Ambulance Service there are now more than 2,600 defibrillators in Tube stations, gyms, shops and other public buildings across London
Survival rates of cardiac arrest victims who collapse out of hospital are around 6% – which sadly means that 94% do not survive. These figures could be greatly improved if a defibrillator is used quickly.
In these uncertain times and let’s face it many of us are a bit jittery – access to a defibrillator is very important. While CPR (hands on cardio pulmonary resuscitation) plays a part in helping a person who is not breathing survive, it is the defibrillator that may save their life.
Once the heart stops there are only 3 minutes before the brain begins to die. Depending on where the victim is located it can take up to 15 minutes for an ambulance to arrive. If there is a defibrillator nearby, then a member of the general public could start doing the chest compressions while another fetches the defibrillator. They are easy to use and self-explanatory and while it is advisable for everyone to attend a first aid course, the defibrillator will give you step by step instructions of what to do.
In 2014/15 the London Ambulance Service answered 10,211 cardiac arrest calls and attempted to resuscitate 4,655 people. Thankfully on 2,500 occasions members of the public helped the victims by doing CPR and chests including 73 times when defibrillators were used — which saved at least 41 lives.
Defibrillators are not a particularly expensive piece of kit but are probably one of the most important investments that can be made.
See our recent article on Everything You Need to Know about Defibrillators – it will answer all the questions you may have.
Safe and Sound include the use of defibrillators on all our first aid training courses. For more information on both on-site and open courses go to:
http://www.safeandsound.uk.net/product-category/courses/
If you are interesting in purchasing a defibrillator go to:
http://www.safeandsound.uk.net/product/zoll-aed-plus/
