Debdale Bowling and Social Club have recently added a defibrillator to their club, following the receipt of a grant from their council awarded by local councillor Julie Reid.
Councillor Reid chose this worthwhile cause as it was one close to her heart, with her father having passed away in May 2017. Having recovered from a heart attack when he was 59, Derek Hinds had retired and was a keen bowler, and had gone to his local bowling green on the day he passed.
After bowling a great ball, Derek then collapsed on the green. The nearest defibrillator was a local primary school and by the time it was retrieved for us, Derek had already passed.In memory of her father, Councillor Reid has decided to award a grant to her local bowling club to purchase a defibrillator and training.
With many teams including two lady’s teams, 11 people were trained how to use the defibrillator and how to deliver immediate and effective CPR.
On the 28th November, the club was presented with their defibrillator officially by Councillor Julie Reid, supported by Councillor Allan Grafton. For the benefit of the members who attended who had not been trained, Geoff did a short demonstration of the iPAD SP1 Fully Automatic, with the knowledge he had absorbed from the training.
The 11 bowlers who completed the training were Patricia Breen, Joseph Carter, Irene Hargreaves, Barry Hockey, Angela Kelly, David Kenyon, Allan Painter, Brian Risdale, Allan Salmon and husband and wife Olwyn and Dave Taylor.
Geoff Carter, Hon Secretary of the club told the meeting: “We’re thankful to Councillor Julie Reid for this grant. Having the defibrillator is a success and if we ever must use it to save a life, it will be a great success. They are great pieces of kit and I think all parks and premises should have them!”
defibshop Manager Millie McDonagh said: “We often focus the larger organisations who purchase multiple defibrillators and it was refreshing to celebrate the difference this club have made by campaigning for a defibrillator and making their members aware of the risk of cardiac arrest. Geoff and his bowling teammates have educated themselves comprehensively following the training to ensure that if the defibrillator is used, it’s used effectively to save someone’s life.”
Cardiac arrest can happen to anyone at any time, regardless of their age, gender, lifestyle choices of physical fitness level. The only definitive treatment for a victim of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) is CPR and immediate defibrillation. If effective CPR is given alongside the use of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) in the 3-5 minutes following a victim’s collapse, their chance of survival goes from 6% - 74%.
To find out more about defibrillators, visit our defibrillators page or call our helpful team on 0845 071 0830.
