Launceston General Hospital hosted a successful World Restart A Heart Day event on Wednesday, offering free CPR training to the local community.
Members of the public gathered at the hospital throughout the day for live demonstrations, kid’s activities, goodie bags and prize draws.
St John Ambulance Tasmania said CPR and AEDs (automated external defibrillators) are vital in improving survival rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests.
According to statistics, around 30,000 Australians and New Zealanders experience cardiac arrests outside of a hospital setting each year, with only one in 10 surviving.
When someone is in cardiac arrest, their chances of survival drop by 10% every minute without CPR or an AED shock.
The damage can be irreversible after 10 minutes without intervention.
St John Ambulance is advocating for AEDs to become as commonplace as fire extinguishers in homes and workplaces, with new research revealing that 96% of Australians recognise their importance in public areas.
“We hope that no one will ever have to use an AED, but you want to know, if that happens, that one is available,” said Joanna Curteis from St John Ambulance Tasmania.
“AEDs are a really important part of the chain of survival, but so is quality CPR. The more you understand how to do CPR, the safer the community will be as well.”
