Central Taranaki Safe Community Trust looking after rural hearts

Central Taranaki Safe Community Trust community safety officer Di Gleeson said having AEDs in rural parts of central Taranaki, like at Mahoe Hall, ensures the life-saving machines are accessible to everyone. Photo / Alyssa Smith

“When it comes to responding to an emergency, time is of the essence and you need to act fast.”

Central Taranaki Safe Community Trust (CTSCT) community safety officer Di Gleeson said when she realised central Taranaki’s more rural residents didn’t have any automated external defibrillators (AEDs) closer than a drive of 10 or more minutes away, she knew something had to be done.

“A two-minute walk or a five-minute drive compared to a 10 to 30-minute drive is life-changing. It can make all the difference in saving someone’s life.”

As part of the CTSCT’s Save a Life project, they partnered with the Department of Medicine Charitable Trust to fund 10 new 24-hour AEDS, placing one in Eltham and nine in different community halls around the district.

“This all started when I realised there was no AED on the Ōpunake Road side of Stratford. We had to change that,” she said.

Central Taranaki Safe Community Trust community safety officer Di Gleeson with the new 24-hour accessible AED at Mahoe Hall. Photo / Alyssa Smith

The AEDs are inside lockboxes, funded by each of the community hall committees.

“It gives that buy-in and ownership of this life-saving device.”

She said to unlock the box and get the AED to the patient, people need to call 111 to receive the code.

“Once you return to the patient with the AED, the machine tells you what to do with voice prompts. They are easy and fool-proof to use.”

She said as well as putting new AEDS into rural communities, CTSCT has also partnered with Hato Hone St John to run free CPR and AED courses.

“While AEDS are easy to use, it’s important to have that knowledge before it’s needed. Statistics show that a patient that receives CPR and AED treatment has a 50% better chance of survival.”

The next step of the project is making all of Stratford’s AEDs accessible 24 hours a day.

“While there are many machines in Stratford, only three or four operate 24 hours of the day. The rest are only available during business hours. You can never predict when you’ll need a machine, so we’d like to make them all accessible.”

The locations of the new 24-hour accessible AEDs are: Mahoe Hall, Pembroke School, Cardiff Hall, Douglas Hall, Te PoPo Domain and pool, Tututawa Hall, Four Square Kaponga, Eltham High Street, Maata Hall, Mangatoki Hall.

For more information on the free CPR and AED training, visit www.safetrust.org.nz.