According to the safety specialists, sudden heart attacks are the leading cause of premature death in the UK, and Arco said it is keen to educate its customers on the facts and potential dangers in order to help them prepare for all eventualities.
A sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is an abrupt loss of pulse and consciousness caused by an unexpected failure in the heart’s ability to effectively pump blood to the brain and around the body.
But with proper immediate treatment, many lives can be saved.
For example, if a defibrillator is used on a victim within three to five minutes of collapsing, survival rates can be as high as 50-70%.
However, the likelihood of a successful resuscitation decreases by around 7-10% with every minute that passes and unfortunately, after 10 minutes without defibrillation very few attempts at resuscitation are successful.
Whilst first aid courses and defibrillator specific training is available, circumstances often dictate that no trained operator is present on site when an emergency strikes.
With this in mind, the latest defibrillators in the Arco catalogue are purposely designed so that everyone, including the untrained user, can easily access the equipment.
It is important to note that defibrillators are completely safe to use and will not allow a shock to be given unless the heart’s rhythm requires it.
Furthermore, the machines are designed to be stored for long periods without use and require very little routine maintenance. Arco hope that by educating the untrained user, they will feel more confident to use them in a crisis.
The company is also offering a 20% discount on a range of its defibrillators until the end of September.
“With a wealth of expert information from our in-house specialists, we want to stress the importance of education surrounding defibrillation, with the premise that workers can be more proactive in the early stages of SCA,” said Arco’s Product and Procurement Manager, Niall Robinson.
“We are delighted to be taking part in increasing the awareness of this tragic cause of death and hope that in doing so, more lives can be saved in the future.”
Earlier this year, SHP reported that London taxi drivers are being trained on how to use defibrillator’s, with a view to being able to help passengers and pedestrians in the event of a heart attack.
In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, ‘Burnout, stress and being human’, Heather Beach is joined by Stacy Thomson to discuss burnout, perfectionism and how to deal with burnout as an individual, as management and as an organisation.
We provide an insight on how to tackle burnout and why mental health is such a taboo subject, particularly in the workplace.
I know it’s pedantic but you could start by using the right terminology
SCA is not the same as a heart attack. A heart attack occurs if blood flow to part of the heart muscle is blocked. During a heart attack, the heart usually doesn’t suddenly stop beating. SCA, however, may happen after or during recovery from a heart attack.