Heart kick-start device must be everywhere, says expert

HAVING a simple device that kick-starts the heart, situated in every community, should be part of any State plan to concentrate acute hospital services, a cardiac specialist urged yesterday.

One of the main fears people have about the implementation of the Hanley Report, is that they will be too far away from the nearest hospital, should they suffer a heart attack.

Every day about 16 people die from sudden cardiac arrest. It is a condition that can affect anyone, even teenagers.

A growing number of public venues are now installing high-tech machines called defibrillators, that administer an electronic shock designed to restore the heart to its normal rhythm.

Dr Joseph Galvin, a consultant cardiologist at James Connolly Memorial Hospital in Dublin, said they should be available in every community of around 3,000 people.

“With our current ambulance service, and our roads, we have a major problem in being able treat people suffering from cardiac arrest,” he warned.

Modern technology has made the devices simple to use, so only very basic training was required by non-medical personnel, he pointed out.

Defibrillators in Dublin airport have been used to treat three heart attack victims, while Dublin's Blanchardstown Centre has yet to use theirs.

Shoppers at Blanchardstown, however, can take comfort from the fact they are just two minutes away from emergency help.

It is reckoned that the machines in Blanchardstown will be used at least once every two years to save a life.

An occupational health nurse, employed by a major company in Dublin, used a defibrillator to save a patient's life five weeks ago.

Cardiac support charity, Croí, announced recently that it is providing seven defibrillators, at seven locations in Galway.

Of the 6,000 people who suffer a heart attack each year, about 60, or 1%, survive.

US studies show that cardiac arrest survival rates can be improved by over 25% in communities that have ‘first response’ automatic external defibrillator schemes.

If treatment is administered in the first five minutes the victim has a 50% chance of survival. After 10 minutes, survival rates drop close to zero per cent.