4 January 2012
The London Ambulance Service has backed the British Heart
Foundation’s ‘hands-only CPR’ campaign.
In an advert featuring footballer-turned-actor
Vinnie Jones, members of the public are encouraged to call 999 and
use chest compressions if they witness a cardiac arrest, but to
forget mouth to mouth.
First Responders Manager Chris Hartley-Sharpe
said: “We fully support this campaign encouraging people to call
999 and start chest compressions immediately if they see someone
collapse and stop breathing.
“By carrying out cardiopulmonary resuscitation
while an ambulance is on the way you can double someone’s chances
of survival from a cardiac arrest, even if you don’t perform mouth
to mouth."
Chris continued: “Thanks to the hard work of
our staff more Londoners than ever are surviving an out-of-hospital
cardiac arrest, but bystanders only attempt lifesaving intervention
before ambulance crews arrive 37 per cent of the time, according to our latest figures.
“Getting a defibrillator, a machine that can
restart the heart by delivering an electric shock, to someone
quickly if they’re suffering a cardiac arrest will also greatly
increase their chances of survival.”
“We now have a team of dedicated paramedics
funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) who are working in the
community to teach people Heartstart, a simple life-saving
course.”
To find out more about how you can learn to
save a life please contact Antoinette Williamson in our Community
Resuscitation team on 020 7783 2534 or email resustraining@lond-amb.nhs.uk.
- Ends -
Notes to editors:
Overall cardiac arrest survival rate - 259 out
of 3,246 cardiac arrest patients who ambulance staff attempted to
resuscitate survived to be discharged from hospital (eight per
cent). In 2009/10, 237 out of 2,973 cardiac arrest patients treated
by ambulance staff survived (also around eight per cent).
Utstein cardiac arrest survival rate - The
Utstein cardiac arrest survival rate in London in 2010/11 is 22.8
per cent, up from 21.5 per cent the previous year. This is the
highest level it has ever been in London.
The cardiac arrest survival figure is calculated using the
internationally-recognised Utstein method. The calculation takes
into account the number of patients discharged alive from hospital
who had resuscitation attempted following a cardiac arrest of
presumed cardiac aetiology, and who also had their arrest witnessed
by a bystander and an initial cardiac rhythm of ventricular
fibrillation or ventricular tachycardia.