Defibrillation & CPR

• Around 2.5 million people are living with heart disease in the UK.
• Collectively, heart and circulatory diseases cause more than one in three of all deaths in the UK.
• 200,000 people die from cardiac arrest in the UK each year. The majority might be saved if only their heart could be defibrillated within five minutes.
• Every six minutes someone dies of a heart attack in the UK.
• One in three people who have a heart attack die before reaching hospital.
• Heart disease, by itself, is the UK’s biggest killer and the most common cause of premature death in the UK (death before the age of 75).
• one in five men and one in seven women die from heart disease that’s around 94,000 deaths in the UK each year; over 250 every day.

When someone has a cardiac arrest defibrillation needs to be prompt. For every minute that passes chances of survival decrease by 10 to 14 per cent. Research shows that applying a controlled shock within five minutes of collapse provides the best possible outcome (British Heart Foundation)

An Automated External Defibrillator - with a trained operator - at the site of a sudden cardiac arrest can raise the chance of survival from 5% to 80%.

What is defibrillation?

Defibrillation is defined as the termination of fibrillation. It is a controlled electrical shock which may restore an organised rhythm in the heart to enable it to contract and pump blood (Resuscitation Council UK).

Why is early defibrillation important?

Death occurs within minutes of the onset of ventricular fibrillation and defibrillation is the only effective treatment. The sooner the shock is provided the greater the chance of survival for the victim (Resuscitation Council UK).

Course Content:

• Heart Disease - The State of the Nation
• Basic Life Support - DRS ABC
• The Chain of Survival
• Life Threatening Cardiac Rhythms
• Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)
• Automated External Defibrillator (AED)
• Practical Cardiac Arrest Scenarios
• Protocols and Precautions for Cardiac Arrest (CPR &AED)
• Special Precautions And Considerations
• Defibrillator (AED) Maintenance
• Reporting

Course Material

• All delegates receive a comprehensive Defibrillation Training book at the start of the course.

Assessment

• All delegates are assessed as to their competency by continued assessment of the trainer throughout the course.

Certification

• Successful delegates will receive a BLS/AED certificate provided the following competencies in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and use of an automated external defibrillator (AED) are met in accordance with the Resuscitation Council (UK) guidelines.