Help save a fellow Londoner’s life

Yes I am confident as I know the kits have clear instructions and I would need to follow them. However, I was involved in an arrest in Liverpool Street and they brought 2 AEDs but both didn’t have some of the equipment if I remember correctly. Hopefully these are monitored and checked periodically that the equipment is all there.

I have seen them in places such as stations but sometimes you just walk by one that is part of the street. I feel they are quite nearby usually, however it would be useful to know if there are any themes to know where to look if you are not sure where to find one. The obvious one is a nearby station but I wonder if there are any other common spots. 

The main thing is empowering people to help, you don’t want loads of people to just walk by. It’s actually pretty simple and you usually need more than 1 person to do it well and that other person can go get an AED and call for help etc. therefore helping people just being able to stay at an arrest and help will be useful even if they can’t do CPR. The other thing is CPR done well is quite tiring, so having more people being trained is helpful. Also as mentioned before you get instructions from 999 and the AED so as long as you are up for it, you just need to follow instructions.

The other thing I noticed is it can be a bit unnerving to be part of/watch CPR for some people. Not really sure what can be done about that, but just thought I would mention it and maybe it would be useful to share experiences. 

Needs much more promotion by the mayor 

*I would not be confident using a defibrillator because I learn by doing and I've never had the chance to try it

*As above... I would be afraid of making the situation worse for the person

*I haven't noticed any. They could be in supermarkets, pubs, cafes. It would be good to know where defibs are with a public campaign in tubes and on buses advertising where they can be found and videos of how to use them .

*I'm retired so I have time to sign up for a course. 

*Public campaign in tubes and on buses advertising saying where they can be found and videos of how to use them.. also in post office, hospital, doctor surgeries..anywhere where people queue/sit and wait.

"Cardiac arrest is when someone’s heart has stopped working and they are not breathing properly."

How will I know if someone is having a heart attack? What symptoms?

What characteristics?

What happens (physically) to the person who is having a heart attack?

What if the person has a pacemaker in their chest?

What if the person has metals inside their body from previous surgeries and implants?

I know the answer to all my questions because I watched Gray's Anatomy and took anatomy classes in my psychology degree, but putting electric "weapons" around the city without guiding and giving people instructions doesn't make any sense.

• Would you feel confident using a defibrillator if you see someone having a cardiac arrest? Why or why not? 

  I think a course made by specialist to people will be the best

• What might hold you back from using a defibrillator? 

About 1 years aog

Following up from earlier comments.  I know that using a defibrillator is safe provided follow the instructions it gives .. and these are verbal.

However, something that I haven't seen addressed is that I believe one has to be within something like 150 yards of a defib in order to get it out and working on time. Is that right?  If so, we need a lot of them.  I once thought of trying to get one in a rural area but then also learned it needs an electricity supply.  Presumably latter not so much a problem in a city.

One useful way of raising awareness of these new defibrillators and empowering people to use them would be to copy the 'Poems On The Underground' concept and advertise them on the TfL bus and tube network. 

Ads placed in those places would be seen by thousands of commuters every day and, just as Poems On The Underground has made poetry much more widely read especially by people who might not normally bother with poetry, this would make the public much more aware of what an amazing device the defibrillator is and how easy it is to learn how to use one in an emergency.

I do an amount of off-shore sailing - being maybe 3-4 hours (perhaps longer) away from proper medical help persuades me to do a day-long first aid course, typically every 3 years.

The defib training is probably the easiest segment - the equipment literally talks you through the process.

YouTube video?

• I would feel confident to operate a defibrillator as it has been showed me how to use it on a previous First Aid training. 
• The need to refresh how use it in real scenario

- I have had not see any. In public transport and some busy bus stops

• Knowing that there are courses available throughout the year so if I am not able to attend one training I might can attend the following one
• Putting sings and adverts across the Tfl transport network about the importance of defibrillator its usage and the likelihood of them to saving lives. Should be shown statistics and fact-checked figures. 

Have done two courses in the past but as time passes one forgets how to use a defibrillator.  The  key is giving everyone the opportunity to be shown how to use one  then perhaps online top up instructions every 3 years to remind them.

Hi!

As part of my job I have to be a qualified first aider so I am familiar with the equipment although haven't had to use it thankfully.  I think its super important life saving piece of equipment so both my kids have done St Johns Ambulance training so they too could use one.  

From my experience if there is an accident in the street passers by are always keen to help and I dont think there would be difficulty getting member of the public to sign up for free courses through local businesses etc.

Good luck!

I would like a map of defibs near me - can they be marked on Google Maps?  I would attend a course if it were near me (Muswell Hill or Haringey)

I have been on First Aid courses as I am a volunteer for Woodcraft Folk which is a children's charity.  We meet weekly in term time and take the children on outings and to camp.  I asked the school where we meet to re-locate the defibrillator so we could have access to it - rather that in a locked office.

The reason I feel fairly confident is that we were shown how to use on on our outdoor first aid course, and they pointed out that they have extremely clear instructions included as you go along.

I am in favour of as many publicly-available defribrillators as possible.  I know that one is instructed what to do by the machine but it is just scary for me to come across someone whose heart has stopped beating.    I have done a course on CPR outside London and looked at videos but one forgets so expect people to need refreshers.   

I guess TV ads help make people aware but I don't see these so don't know what's around.   

Having them in the stations is good... what about a selection of retail outlets and in busy streets like Oxford Street.  Haven't looked out for them there. Also needed in residential areas.. pubs/cafes would be suitable..  many need to be in the street but then often have to be locked and inevitably a delay while getting them unlocked.

I have seen a local defibrillator in my local park but it’s locked behind a 6ft fence only seems to be for football players days. 

I am another who has done first aid training including defibs and CPR.  However, since leaving work and relevant volunteering roles, I am in need of refreshers - not least CPR seemed to change slightly on every refresher/update.

I am pleased that major retailers often have defibs, but I am not sure I have seen any links to the defib finder website, and have not found an app for the UK.

I think training is key.  Having to read instructions in a stress situation with no prior familiarity is just too difficult.  I have seen defibrillators in many locations in offices and other locations in and outside London, but I would not feel confident in using one; although I would try if I believed I was the only one who could help.  I have received CPR training in the past, but a refresher would be very helpful along with the training on defibillators.  If there was a short (few hours) training in my local area I would certainly be willing to take the training.

There's a yellow defibrillator cabinet on the platform at my local tube station which I think is brilliant. They should be in all public places.

A few year's ago a colleague of mine had his life saved at work because someone knew how to operate one of these machines. The paramedics, said that the defibrillator had definitely saved his life.

I would be interested in doing training.

I've done a lot of first aid courses - most recently the 2-day first aid at work course this year, so I feel fairly confident that I would know what to do if I saw someone having a cardiac arrest and that I would know how to use a defibrillator. I think a public awareness campaign with simple messaging would help people feel more confident using them - I mean basically all you need to do with the automated defibs is attach the pads, turn them on and follow the instructions. If clever people could come up with a simple acronym and easily-remembered instructions such as the FAST one for stroke then that would really help. More clear and obvious signage about where to find them in public spaces and more consistency of locations would help, e.g. if they are at all tube stations then you would know you could find one there. How you would know where to locate it in the tube station would be a question though. Would it always be in the ticket hall? Perhaps you could hold the free courses in easily-accessible public spaces like libraries. I think it is a great initiative.