Thread: Automatic Defibrillation Devices

About six months ago, our local Community Bank gave these units to 8 local sporting groups and schools with the hope that they are never used but they are there for an emergency.
Training was provided as part of the deal.
PM me if you wish to discuss further
I say go for it - if one life is saved it is all worthwhile.

I agree with chesand completely. The hope is that it just spends its whole life attached to the wall and is just never needed. The comfort though is knowing it's there.

I'm a trainer (first aid) for my son's junior football team and have started working on the committee to fundraise for an AED. My experience is that there are people, young and old, who have underlying and sometimes unknown conditions where their hearts can simply fail. In these cases the AED can save a life.

I was out for a run one day at work through a park when I came across a 15 year old school kid who had just collapsed whilst playing ball with his class. He had a heart condition diagnosed as a baby and had made it 15 years without a glitch. This day his heart just stopped. I called 000 and commenced CPR. We were in Hawthorn in Melbourne but the ambo struggled to find us. His teacher and I worked on him for 11 minutes without so much as a heatbeat or breath from him. The ambos arrived and used their defibrillator on him 5 times on the way to hospital. Amazingly he survived and turned 21 a few months ago. I was told the odds of a success in this situation for this long was about 200 to 1. Joell spent some time in an induced coma and eventually went home without any damage to his brain. His heart never started during that 11 minutes so we were just incredibly lucky that we did the CPR effectively enough to keep enough oxygen to his brain.

We were lucky - very lucky! Had we have had a defibrillator handy we would not have needed quite so much luck. The machine would have started his heart and although it would have stopped again as it did for the ambos, it would have given us a even better chance of keeping him going until the paramedics arrived.

I have watched fellow trainers on footy ovals wait for 35 minutes for an ambulance to arrive to treat an injured kid. If someone goes down with a failed heart and all you have is CPR, 35 minutes is a lifetime. In these cases a defibrillator will save lives.

Hopefully you will never need it but it's great to know it's there.

Danny

Maybe its something the Knox woodworkers should think about getting!

Thanks to those who posted.I wrote this post just prior to making my way to one of the woodwork clubs that i go to give a talk on CPR and i wanted to survey the forum to see if many community clubs have them. Turns out two members in my audience at the club are already trained ( 1 at the bowls club and 1 volunteer coast guard)

I am a Registered Nurse with a Paediatric intensive care background in the not too distant past but now office jockey. I have particpaited in the resuscitation of adults and children in hospitals with mixed results. I have never been unfortunate enough to do this "in the field". I believe that this would be the best machine any club could have.( if you already have enough woodwork equipment).

For those of you who are after one fill out this Commonwealth grant scheme application. and try your luck. Make sure you scroll down to appendix a to see the list of items.

Paul

I'm an ICU Nurse and had to use one at Melbourne Airport last year. The lady concerned had very little time without CPR and the device was easy to use and I'm glad to say (after calling the hospital she went to) she survived as was expected to have a good outcome.

These devices are invaluable. I think any organisation, no matter who they are, should have one.

All this aside EVERYONE should be trained doing CPR, regardless. After that, a course in basic first aid (especially considering what we all do!) is imperative.

-Scott.

Further to my earlier post, as a result of the training provided there are now more than 60 people in our area who have had training in the use of these machines. They know what the machine is if they see it in an airport etc.
Hopefully they never have to use one but they are capable no matter where the need arises

A friend has used one several times at work (railway station) and he thinks they are very amusing - sticky beaks who won't help but just keep getting in the way bounce across the platform in a most satisfactory manner.

He has re-started a number of heart cases and quite a few druggies too.

I work on an offshore oil rig currently 200kms off the coast of WA. Over the last 3 months we've had two of our guys suffer massive heart attacks and in both cases an automatic defib unit saved their lives.

As pointed out by another poster even a person with minimal or no training can deploy and operate a defib unit. I also agree with the same person that everyone should make an effort to do some basic CPR and first aid training......nothing beats the feeling that comes from having just saved someone's life.

Any doubts about your ticker and you can get a defib implant now. USD 30,000 and upwards if you're Stateside.

..

Just as an aside, I'd like to do one of those remote 1st aid courses, having done one for office workers. I see a fair number of fellow motorbike riders go down in the country and the well-meant but ignorant help they're offered/given makes me cringe.

We now have SAED's in every depot and every Surf Club has them. The next time I get a call, the first thing to do is get the Packer Wacker/defib/SAED as I dont want to experience doing resus and not having the cas make it, again.

I'm only a Occupational First Aider and my idea is if I cannot put a bandaid on a wound or flush it with saline, get an ambo quick!