A COURSE aimed at ‘taking the shock out of using a defibrillator’ is being held in Bromsgrove from 6.30pm to 10pm on Monday (January 18).
The first aid session being run by St John Ambulance is aimed at giving more people in Worcestershire the confidence to use this life saving piece of kit in an emergency.
Automated external defibrillators – or AEDs – are increasingly found in public places and are simple enough to be used by anyone, but not everyone has the confidence to use one.
In a situation where someone has gone into cardiac arrest, every second counts, so by introducing more people to defibrillators and how to use them, St John Ambulance is hoping to equip more people in the community with the skills and confidence to be the difference in a life or death situation.
As well as learning about defibrillators, those attending the three-and-a-half hour course, will learn the five main ways to save a life including helping an unconscious casualty (recovery position), what to do if someone is choking, has chest pains or is bleeding severely and how to use cardio pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to restart someone’s heart.
Emma Elgerton, the charity’s West Midlands’ regional training co-ordinator, said one of the questions trainers were asked most was how to use a defibrillator but a normal three-hour essential first aid course they simply did not have time to talk people through how to use one.
“We have introduced a slightly longer course for 2016 to include a section on using an AED.
“We understand that using a defibrillator for the first time can be quite scary if you haven’t had any experience of one before, so we are hoping that by giving people the opportunity to learn about AEDs and see how simple they are to use.”
She added she hoped the course would give participants the confidence to use an AED when they needed to.
Places on the course cost £30 and booking is essential.
For more, e-mail [email protected] or call 0121 237 3879.
