Pegasus Post: January 21, 2021

PEGASUS POST Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
Thursday January 21 2021 3
Defibrillators gifted to housing complexes
SAFETY: (From left to right) – Charlotte Shaw and Heather McGowan of ASB, OCHT’s
James Hadlee and Michelle Ormsby-Brett and Alice Earnshaw-Morris of St John, at the
handover of the defibrillators.
TWO COMMUNITY housing
complexes have been gifted
automated external defibrillators
in a bid to reduce the number of
deaths from cardiac arrest.
The life-saving devices were
presented to the Ōtautahi Community
Housing Trust by ASB
and St John.
The St John Christchurch area
committee has donated outdoor
cabinets for the AEDs, which
will be installed at Reg Stillwell
Place in North Brighton and
and Bridgewater Courts, South
Brighton, community housing
complexes.
The area committee has previously
placed four AEDs and
cabinets in OCHT communities.
Ōtautahi Community Housing
Trust said it was thrilled to be
able to house the lifesaving devices,
which will be available for
the surrounding communities.
“There are fewer AEDS in East
Christchurch than many other
parts of the city, and the donations
are a fantastic addition,"
OCHT tenancy relations manager
James Hadlee said.
“There have been occasions
when tenants have performed
CPR to save lives. Last year's
OCHT Housing Heroes Award
was won by a Pickering Courts
(St Albans) resident who responded
to a neighbour's calls
for help.
“He heard his neighbour
upstairs yelling for help and
when he arrived, he found him
on the ground looking blue with
no pulse. He started CPR and
continued compressions until
paramedics arrived.’’
Findings from St John's out
of hospital cardiac arrest report,
released in March last year,
reveal that five people a day are
treated by ambulance officers for
a cardiac arrest.
People in low income and rural
areas are not only twice as likely
to suffer a cardiac arrest but have
considerably fewer public AEDs
available.
Compared to Europeans,
Pacific Island and Māori
communities have a
disproportionally higher
incidence of out of hospital
cardiac arrest associated with
risk factors such as deprivation, a
St John spokesman said.
“Studies by St John have
revealed that every minute that
goes by without CPR or defibrillation
reduces the chance of
survival by 10-15 per cent, with
only about 13 per cent surviving
a cardiac arrest.
“We know that this survival
rate can be doubled by people
taking three easy steps; calling
111 for an ambulance, starting
CPR immediately and using the
nearest AED,’’ St John clinical
adviser – Hauora Māori Michelle
Brett said.
“Having an AED accessible in
a community housing complex
where many people frequent,
means lives can be saved.’’
ASB head of community and
sponsorship Mark Graham said
they have been supporting St
John with their mission to get
more AED's into communities.
“We have AEDs in all of our
branches and have had to use
them a number of times, so we
know how critical they can be
in an emergency when every
minute counts. Having this
AED will hopefully make a big
difference when it's needed
most.’’ – NZ Herald
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