A Staffordshire charity set up after the sudden death of two brothers from cardiac arrest has linked up with a fellow charity and Staffordshire University to produce a new video highlighting how prompt defibrillation can save a person’s life.
The Heart of Weston (HoW) was founded in memory of Chris and Steve Phillips, from Weston near Stafford, who tragically died of cardiac arrest, aged 28 and 29 respectively.
Strikingly, 12 young people die of a cardiac arrest in the UK every week. The charity raises awareness of Young Sudden Cardiac Death and promotes CRY (Cardiac Risk in the Young) cardiac screening to help reduce the risk of young people dying suddenly and unexpectedly.
HoW also collaborates with charity, AEDdonate, which supplies defibrillators to local communities. The two organisations were acutely aware that despite supplying the machines, many people were unaware of how to apply CPR or how to use a defibrillator.
Jane Phillips, mother of Chris and Steve, said: “Getting people to attend first aid, CPR and defibrillator training is proving more and more difficult these days, as so many people lead busy lives. What we decided was that if we had a short video that anyone people could watch online, it would at least give people some confidence of what they would need to do if someone had a cardiac arrest.”
For this reason, the charity approached Staffordshire University’s for help. Mike Phillips, Associate Dean in the School of Health and Social Care at Staffordshire University, said: “Heart of Weston has been doing a great job to raise awareness of sudden adult cardiac arrest and Staffordshire University feels it is well placed to help them share and amplify these important and potentially life-saving messages.
“Our Centre of Excellence in Healthcare Education in Blackheath Lane is equipped with an AED for community use and our Clinical Skills Labs are where our nurse, midwife, Operating Department practitioner and paramedic students are able to hone their skills using these life-saving devices.”
The completed video shows how to follow the chain of survival by identifying when someone is in cardiac arrest, when to call for appropriate help, how to administer early and effective CPR, and how early defibrillation using a public access defibrillator can drastically increase the chances of a person recovering from a cardiac arrest.
Early CPR can double, even quadruple the chances of a person surviving a cardiac arrest. Unfortunately, in the UK only 40% of victims receive bystander CPR, and the use of a defibrillator is as low as 2%. Effective use of a defibrillator within three to five minutes of the cardiac arrest can produce survival rates of 50%, even 70%. Each minute of delay reduces the chances of survival by up to 10%.
The message contained in the video is that anyone can try and save a life using CPR and a defibrillator – providing they know what to do.
Tim Davies, Senior Lecturer in Paramedic Science, who features in the video, added: “The chances of surviving a sudden cardiac arrest are increased by a third where an AED is available and, although they come with instructions, the majority of people will not know how to use them. The video aims to show people what steps to take to give a patient the best possible chance of survival and we urge everybody to take a few minutes out of their day to familiarise themselves with the basics of saving a life.”
Dr Sarah Nightingale, trustee of The Heart of Weston, added: “The final result is very impressive. It very clearly shows people what they would need to do if they are ever faced with the traumatic situation of someone having a cardiac arrest. Sparing a few minutes to watch the video really could help you save a life.”
Facts on cardiac arrests
- 30,000 People Suffer Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrests each year in the UK.
- 80% of Cardiac Arrests occur outside of a hospital environment.
- 270 Children die every year of a Sudden Cardiac Arrest at Schools in the UK.
- At least 12 young people die of a Cardiac Arrest in the UK every week.
- Sudden Cardiac Arrest survival rates increase to 50% with early CPR and use of an AED (automated external defibrillator.)