Community defibrillators: what to do if used on scene

Defibrillator on wall located at Sea Palling Beach

We all know that early defibrillation can save lives, and with more than 800 community public access defibrillators (CPADs) in public spaces across the east of England, we’re playing our part in bettering the chance of survival.

But do you know what to do if you attend an incident where a CPAD has been used?

Community public access defibrillator sites are set up, funded, owned and maintained by community groups and villages, and are usually based in or outside places like village halls, telephone boxes, community centres and public houses.

With every CPAD site recorded on our CAD system, the emergency operations centre (EOC) will tell the caller how to collect and use the defibrillator if it’s needed.

But, if you attend a call where a CPAD has been used and the person responsible for it isn’t on scene, you’ll need to take the defibrillator with you and return it to your base station. The EOC team will also remind/advise you to do this, and it’s so we can make sure it’s fully checked over and stocked with pads before being used again.

If a CPAD is returned to a station, duty locality officers or station supervisors are asked to contact their community collaboration manager who will then collect, check and return it to the CPAD site.

If you’d like to know more about CPADs and how we use them, or if you’d be interested in setting one up in your community, please contact defibs@eastamb.nhs.uk.

Published 23rd September, 2016

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