Community value defibrillators - Nenagh Éire Óg GAA club instal one
The cardiac arrest suffered by Christian Eriksen at Euro 2020 has prompted new interest in defibrillators - and the need for awareness of where they are located and how they can be accessed.
John Sherlock of the Order of Malta Nenagh unit said the much-publicised incident led to a lot of people talking about defibrillators locally. The Danish soccer star’s misfortune has at least served to show that cardiac arrest can strike anyone at any time, and how defibrillation can save a life.
“I think there’s a greater awareness now that cardiac arrest is not necessarily an older person’s incident,” Mr Sherlock said. “It can happen to anybody. If it can happen to someone like Christian Eriksen, who was at the top of his game and top of fitness, everybody is vulnerable.”
Mr Sherlock, a lieutenant and award-winning instructor in First Aid with the Order of Malta Ambulance Corps, pointed out that defibrillators have become very commonplace in the Nenagh area. But he said the key point is for people to know where the devices are, and how to access them.
He spoke of a recent situation in the Silvermines area where a person went to get a defibrillator, only to find that they could not access the life-saving device because it was locked away. Thankfully, it was not needed in the end, but Mr Sherlock said this case highlighted a problem that could arise in an emergency situation.
He said that quite a number of defibrillators in Nenagh and the surrounding area are now unlocked. This has not led to any issues of vandalism or theft that he was aware of.
Mr Sherlock praised Nenagh Éire Óg GAA club for recently placing a defibrillator on the outside wall of their premises at MacDonagh Park. While many sports clubs have defibrillators, most of them tend to be locked inside the premises so they are not accessible all of the time.
DATABASE
While a number of mobile phone apps have been developed to indicate the location of nearby defibrillators in the user’s area, Mr Sherlock called for some form of local database to show where every one of these life-saving devices are located in Nenagh. In any event, the Order of Malta lieutenant encouraged people to take note of their nearest defibrillator and to think about what they would do in an emergency.
“It’s no harm for people to think ahead and to know where their nearest defibrillator is in case you need one. People pass by these things, especially at hurling fields and the like; it’s no harm to stop and look and see is there a phone number on it or is it just open to the public.”
The Order of Malta provides training in CPR and the use of defibrillators. Mr Sherlock made the point that they are relatively straightforward to use and said even people without training should not be hesitant about using defibrillators, the majority of which provide voice-recorded instructions.
“Between listening to the machine and the ambulance operator, who will stay with you on the phone and talk you through what you’re doing, once you open the lid, you will know what to do. Tear open the packaging, remove the pads, place one pad on the chest - and there’s a little diagram on the pad to show you where it fits - and one under the arm.
“It will tell you when it’s analysing and it’ll tell you when to push the button. It will also tell you make sure no one is touching the casualty as well when you push the button.”
Mr Sherlock added that defibrillators must be maintained and he encouraged those responsible to check regularly that their device is charged and in proper working order.