Public Defibrillator

Public Defibrillator image

Why do we need Public Access defibrillators in our community?

Out of Hospital Sudden Cardiac Arrest (OHCA) claims around 60,000 to 80,000 people annually across the UK with survival rates of around 5%-10% outside a Hospital setting.

If a person's heart stops or goes into some abnormal heart rhythm the only way to to get the heart back into normal electrical activity is to pass an electrical charge through the heart with a automated external defibrillator (AED).

The first three to four minutes are the most important for a collapsed person and, if Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is used and a Defibrillator is available, the chance of survival improves significantly.



How does an AED Site work ?

  • In the event of a person collapsing, you need to call 999 for an ambulance.
  • The Ambulance Service will ask you a series of questions to establish what is happening. They know where the AEDs are sited and give you the code to access the cabinet .
  • The defibrillator will tell you what to do so listen carefully.
  • The Ambulance will be on its way and if you keep your phone on loud speaker, Ambulance control will help and support you .

In the event you use this AED , we ask you to return it to the cabinet and call the number written on the red case.

The defibrillator at Walsworth Community Center was installed in February 2022 and is situated on the front right hand side of the building's outside wall. It was funded by HItchin AED, Hitchin Town Youth FC, Activate Fitness and Walsworth Community Centre.

This site was chosen as the WCC is used by a range of different adult groups, Football is regularly played opposite the Centre and nearby there is a significantly large residential area.

You don’t need training to use this equipment but if you are interested, we are planning to put on some free awareness sessions in the Autumn 2022