Can we help you and your staff learn how to save a life?
As a local charity the Cardiac Action Group offers your companies and all sections of the community FREE one and a quarter hour Public Access Defibrillator (PAD) site awareness, Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) familiarisation sessions. Just email Info@cag.org.gg for a booking form or phone 07781129539 for further information.
Cardiac arrest is the ultimate medical emergency; it can strike a seemingly healthy person of any age, at anytime and anywhere. Bystanders who witness an out of hospital sudden cardiac arrest are key to providing early CPR and defibrillation. The time between the onset of cardiac arrest and a shock from a defibrillator is critical; survival rates fall by 10% with every minute that passes without defibrillation; hence the need for twenty-four-hour external PAD sites and training the general public in PAD site awareness, CPR and AED use.
The Cardiac Action Group (CAG) initially recognised the need for PAD sites in the Bailiwick of Guernsey in 2012 and between then and 2017 36 sites were installed. They also realised that there was a need for a Community Resuscitation Development Officer (CRDO) to educate the community in CPR and AED use, increase awareness of the PAD sites in the islands and maintain them going forward. The PAD sites have been funded by donations from local businesses and the community, with 83 sites now installed in the Bailiwick.
All the PAD sites are registered with the Joint Emergency Services Control Centre, who in the event of a cardiac arrest will be direct the bystander to the nearest unit. Each PAD site has its own volunteer guardian who checks and cleans the unit every two weeks to ensure its operational and reports to the CRDO using the CAG local monitoring system. The CRDO deals with any problems or maintenance needed as reported by the guardians.
Since 2017, the CRDO Mike Froome, has been in post. He is a former long serving paramedic and a resuscitation approved trainer with the Resuscitation Council, alongside other health qualifications. The role is funded by charitable donations raised by CAG. The demand for his high standard of training increases every year. In the last three years he has trained 2,478 people in 131 venues, returning to some businesses several times to ensure every employee has had the option of attending the training. The training covers PAD site awareness, CPR and AED familiarisation. He will also check any internal defibrillators a venue might have to ensure that they are operational (he has found 29 that were not).
The Guernsey Cardiac Action Group aim to train anyone who wants to gain the knowledge, skills and confidence to help at an out of hospital cardiac arrest. The sessions are delivered free of charge in the workplace and across the community. If you want further information or would like your staff to gain these skills, please contact us on info@cag.org.gg or 07781129539.
