New defibrillators to help give gift of life

CPR is an important skill to learn. Photo / Michael Cunningham

In those few terrifying moments when someone collapses with a heart attack you might have just minutes to save their life.

That has become a lot easier in Northland with Automated External Defibrillators (AED) being installed in ASB banks across the region.

Yesterday, members of the public were at the Rathbone branch of the ASB learning how to use the new life-saving equipment.

More than 2700 cardiac incidents occurred around the country in the last nine months according to the St John Cardiac Arrest Report, with rural residents accounting for more than double of those in urban centres.

Male patients made up 66 per cent of the calls with a median age of 65 years, while the most common cause of cardiac arrest was heart disease.

From October 2013 to June last year there were 172 people in the Northland area who suffered cardiac arrests.

The use of a defibrillator after cardiac arrest can increase the chance of survival by up to 40 per cent.

Northland St John acting district operations manager Ben Lockie, who is also an intensive care paramedic, said the two things that improved someone's chance of survival when suffering a heart attack were early defibrillation and good CPR.

"There is a short window of about four minutes for defibrillation to be successful. So if someone collapses at the gym or in a bank or nearby, if they utilise these machines it increases their chance of surviving immensely," Mr Lockie said.

"CPR is a skill anyone can learn and use even if there is no defib around."

He said St John wanted to see more of the defib machines in public places around the region.

In the case of a cardiac emergency, Northland ASB branches in Dargaville, Kaikohe, Paihia, Kaitaia, Kerikeri, Rathbone St, Walton St and Kamo now have the machines.

Nationally about 2500 New Zealanders are expected to attend workshops and more than 1300 ASB staff will receive training.

A defibrillator delivers a short electric shock to the heart, helping it to regain its natural rhythm.