Save a Life Cymru is delighted to announce that currently 95% of the 7696 Community Public Access Defibrillators (CPADs), that are registered with guardians and connected to The Circuit – the national defibrillator network, are now ‘rescue ready’ for the next cardiac arrest emergency in Wales.
Not all CPADs across Wales are registered with guardians and connected to The Circuit. In fact, many defibrillators are never used because the Welsh Ambulance Service is not aware of their location, how to access them if they are in a locked cabinet or who to contact once they have been used.
The Circuit provides that valuable connection between the CPAD and the 999 call-taker and in those crucial moments after a cardiac arrest, the nearest registered defibrillator can be found to help save a life.
This life saving work has been achieved by the unique team of Save a Life Cymru Community Coordinators, who are managed by Julie Starling. Their day-to-day responsibilities are focused on raising awareness of CPR and on supporting the many volunteer guardians in communities across Wales with the placement, registration, management and maintenance of thousands of new and existing CPAD sites to ensure that they are ‘rescue ready and connected to The Circuit.
Julie Starling, SaLC Clinical Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Programme Manager, said: “Achieving a 95% rate of registered and rescue ready Community Public Access Defibrillators on The Circuit has been the result of a very successful collaboration between the teams of volunteer community guardians, the Save a Live Cymru Community Coordinators and the wider NHS in Wales.
“We are very lucky to have a group of such dedicated guardians who are willing to take on the responsibility of managing CPAD sites for the benefit of their communities. Increasing the availability of rescue ready defibrillators in our communities can help to increase the cardiac arrest survival rate in Wales”.
Carl Powell, Welsh Ambulance Service Trust Clinical Lead - Acute Care said; “The early use of a defibrillator in a patient suffering a cardiac arrest is proven to significantly improve their chances of survival. The hard work of the SaLC team working in partnership with the communities in Wales to ensure that these sites are rescue ready will undoubtedly save lives. The dedication of the team and Welsh communities is testimony of the desire to improve survival from out of hospital cardiac arrests”.
Save a Life Cymru continues to support new and existing volunteer guardians across Wales. The Circuit and the emergency services will only know where rescue ready defibrillators are located if the volunteer guardians register and regularly maintain their CPAD sites. In the event of a cardiac arrest a defibrillator can double or even triple the chance of survival. The current survival rate from an out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OHCA) in Wales is less than 5%.
If a cardiac arrest happens, ‘Help is closer than you think’. Call 999, and start CPR, the call-taker will tell you what to do and send help. They will guide you through CPR and tell you where the nearest registered defibrillator is located, never stop CPR, send someone else to fetch the defibrillator.
For more information, please contact Glenda Davies, SaLC Communication Manager: glenda.davies2@wales.nhs.uk
Photograph of the SaLC Community Coordinator Team receiving their awards for reaching the 95% target, L to R: Julie Starling, Marc Gower (West Wales), Chris Joyce ( South East Wales), Sian Davis ( Mid and South Wales), Chris West ( North Wales), Tomos Hughes ( North Wales) and, SaLC Chair Dr Len Nokes.
About Save a Life Cymru
Save a Life Cymru aims to improve cardiac arrest survival in Wales by promoting CPR and defibrillation within communities. It is part of NHS Wales.
Direct link to: The Circuit – the national defibrillator network
You can find out more about CPR and defibrillation training at https://executive.nhs.wales/SaLC
You can also learn CPR with the BHF for free here: