Five life-saving defibrillators have been installed within the rural communities of Bangor today, Friday 15 January, to ensure that communities have access to these all important, lifesaving resources should anyone require vital support during a cardiac arrest.
The defibrillators were installed thanks to ‘Keep The Beats’ a dedicated fund within The North Wales NHS charity, Awyr Las, which provides enhanced services over and above what the NHS funds.
A defibrillator is used during a cardiac arrest is when the heart stops beating.
30,000 people suffer from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests every year in the UK and unfortunately only 1 in 10 survive. It is imperative that bystanders know how to respond. A cardiac arrest can affect anyone at any time – from young children at school, to adults when they’re at home, work or out in public places.
Every second counts following a cardiac arrest, if you don’t do something the chance of survival will decrease – every minute – by 10%. Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and the use of a defibrillator before the ambulance arrives doubles the chance of survival.
Keep your eyes peeled for these yellow cabinets featuring the Awyr Las and Keep the Beats logos whilst you are out on your daily exercise from home, keeping socially distanced of course, in case you are ever in need of locating one should an emergency situation arise.
If you would like to find out more about Cadwch Curiadau Keep The Beats or would like to support a defibrillator in your community please do get in touch with us awyrlas@wales.nhs.uk http://www.awyrlas.org.uk/keepthebeats
To find locations of existing defibrillators in Bangor or your local area visit: https://111.wales.nhs.uk/localservices/default.aspx?s=DefibrillatorLocations
Photos: Tomos Huws from Keep the Beats installing the new defibrillators in Bangor
