Berkshire cardiac arrest boost
Aldermaston company funds eight new defibrillators
Communities across Berkshire are now a little bit safer thanks to eight new automated external defibrillators which have been installed across Newbury, Reading and Bracknell.
Less than one in ten people in the UK survive an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Two of the biggest factors contributing to this low number are that there aren't enough people prepared to perform CPR when someone has a cardiac arrest, and that there aren't enough defibrillators available across the UK.
In the last 12 months where data is available, emergency responders from South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SCAS) began CPR on 2,603 patients who had a witnessed cardiac arrest; 225 of those (8.6%) survived.
As well as the funding for the purchase and installation of the eight defibrillators, Pump Technology Ltd from Aldermaston also donated a further £2,500 to South Central Ambulance Charity to support the work of the charity's community first responders (CFRs).
David Hamer, Operations Manager - Community Engagement & Training at SCAS, said:
"I am delighted to have worked in collaboration with Pump Technology Ltd and Andy Keast of The London Irish Foundation on this project. This most generous donation has allowed us to purchase eight new AEDs, and with the amazing help of both the Reading and Bracknell Business Improvement District (BID), we have sited these units in new cabinets across Berkshire.
"I would also like to thank all the business owners that have agreed to have these cabinets sited on their premises; without their assistance this project could never have been completed. I do hope these units never have to be used, but in the event of a cardiac arrest they could prove literally lifesaving."
Jonathan Barker, Pump Technology's Managing Director said:
"Although we are a national organisation, we never forget our proud Berkshire roots".
The eight new defibrillators are located at:
One Stop Shop, 1, Kiln Road, Shaw, Newbury, RG14 2HE
John Lewis, Broad Street, Reading, RG1 2BB
Launchpad Reading, The Stables, 1A Merchants Place, Reading, RG1 1DT
Forbury Gardens, Reading, RG1 3EJ
Southern Fried Chicken, Unit 1, Headley Road East, Woodley, RG5 4SQ
Mill Park, Bracknell, RG12 7WT
Toolstation, Trade City, Easthampstead Road, Bracknell, RG12 1YQ
Waitrose, Bond Way, Bracknell, RG12 1RQ
All the defibrillators have been registered with The Circuit, the national defibrillator network, which ensures ambulance services can search, find and direct people to a nearby defibrillator if available, when someone calls 999 reporting a patient in cardiac arrest.