Local MP Virginia Crosbie helps raise awareness of sudden cardiac arrest and AED access 

VIRGINIA CROSBIE, MP FOR YNYS MÔN ATTENDS PARLIAMENTARY EVENT TO IMPROVE ACCESS TO LIFE-SAVING DEFIBRILLATORS

·         Virginia Crosbie, MP for Ynys Môn attends parliamentary event held to raise awareness of sudden cardiac arrest and promote the importance of CPR training and defibrillator access 

·         The event is hosted by Rapid Response Revival^® in partnership with St John Ambulance

·         Rapid Response Revival^® has created CellAED^®, the world-first personal defibrillator – designed to increase access to defibrillators and improve the chances of surviving a sudden cardiac arrest 

Virginia Crosbie, MP for Ynys Môn, attended an event in Westminster in May to support a campaign to improve survival rates from sudden cardiac arrest in Ynys Môn and across the UK.

The parliamentary event was hosted by Rapid Response Revival^®, in partnership with St John Ambulance, who are on a mission to reduce the UK death toll from sudden cardiac arrest.

In the UK, 150 people die per day from sudden cardiac arrest. It is one of the nation’s biggest killers, killing more people than cancer. According to the British Heart Foundation, each year, 60,000 sudden cardiac arrests happen out of hospital. The vast majority of them happen in the home (72%) or the workplace (15%) – with little to no warning.

New research carried out on the UK population reveals that only 18% of people would feel confident using a defibrillator if they witnessed a loved one suffering a sudden cardiac arrest. What’s more, 62% of adults don’t know where their nearest defibrillator is when they are at home. Survival rate is low; if a victim does not receive CPR or defibrillation within the first ten minutes, they will not survive.

Rapid Response Revival^® has created the world-first personal defibrillator, CellAED^®, which is a fraction of the price, size, and weight of conventional AEDs. Designed to be used by someone with no medical training, it is improving the chances of surviving a cardiac arrest, increasing access to defibrillators and overcoming barriers to their use.

“I am passionate about my defibrillator campaign and its success in not only identifying their locations but also providing free-of-charge first aid and defibrillator training to my constituents across Anglesey,” said Virginia. “The key to improving survival rates is access to a defibrillator. Without defibrillation the chances of surviving cardiac arrest drop by 10% every minute. This means that in the UK, an average of 150 people a day die from out of hospital cardiac arrest – one person every ten minutes. At a tenth of the price, size and weight of current AED (defibrillator) technology this AED is making it accessible for homes, businesses and community groups to prepare for. I will be feeding back what I have seen to groups on the island and to anyone who is thinking of placing a defibrillator in their community.”

Dr Steven Brooks, Chief Medical Officer of Rapid Response Revival^® said,“Treating out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is a huge challenge in the UK. A lack of awareness is often compounded by barriers to defibrillator access. It was fantastic to meet [insert MP name] to talk about how we can address these issues together. CellAED^®uses new technology that has been created with the ultimate goal of improving the chances of surviving a sudden cardiac arrest, so that more people can access to a defibrillator in those critical few minutes.” 

Kit Bowerin, Policy & Public Affairs Officer at St John Ambulance said: “We know that speed is everything when it comes to out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. Survival rates in this country lag far behind other nations. As the nation’s leading first aid and health response charity, our training in CPR and work with partners on widening access to early defibrillation is tackling that gap. St John welcomes any efforts to innovate in support of our lifesaving mission. We’re pleased to see so many Parliamentarians joining us today to understand the vital role that CPR training and better defibrillator access can play in saving lives.”