Automated External Defibrillators (AED’s)

[bosshog]

So I did a full days first course today. I learnt a lot of things, but one of the points I came away with is unless you have a defribrillator handy when you have a heart attack then you don't stand any real chance. Given an ambulance response time is over an hour here in rural Norfolk, I thinking about getting one of these for the house. I've had a look online and they range from £700 to about £1600. Before I buy one, any recommendations?

[The_Doc]

Sounds great, but prevention is better than cure, so weight, blood pressure cholesterol etc

You are then going to have to teach your wife and kids how to put the defibrillator on you in an emergency. Tough process.

[rovermorris999]

Is there a first responder scheme in your area? I used to volunteer for ours, a good idea that gets a defib to you within a short time.
http://www.lives.org.uk/

[bosshog]

rovermorris999 said:

Is there a first responder scheme in your area? I used to volunteer for ours, a good idea that gets a defib to you within a short time.
http://www.lives.org.uk/

yes there is, but at 10% per min less chance of survival , getting to ours within 10mins is slim chance at best

[rovermorris999]

If the call was within the village we used to manage 5 minutes regularly. More if an outlying house but better than nowt. Having your own is a good idea as long as there are at least two of you there, maybe get the neighbours involved? No doubt the 'professionals' would advise against it but defibs are pretty idiot proof, they'll only shock if needed. I don't think there's any law against it.

[Gareth79]

rovermorris999 said:

If the call was within the village we used to manage 5 minutes regularly. More if an outlying house but better than nowt. Having your own is a good idea as long as there are at least two of you there, maybe get the neighbours involved? No doubt the 'professionals' would advise against it but defibs are pretty idiot proof, they'll only shock if needed. I don't think there's any law against it.

I think the only risk is that if it's not done correctly the defib won't fire and worse than just doing regular CPR until an ambulance arrives. Oh, also people need to keep clear of the patient, but the verbal instructions say that of course.

[rovermorris999]

Gareth79 said:

I think the only risk is that if it's not done correctly the defib won't fire and worse than just doing regular CPR until an ambulance arrives. Oh, also people need to keep clear of the patient, but the verbal instructions say that of course.

They're pretty fool-proof with a little common sense. You'd do CPR anyway if the defib doesn't need to do anything. A common misconception is that they restart a stopped heart. They don't, they can only do any good if the heart is fibrillating, hence the name. I went to many callouts and only had to use it or CPR a few times. The most useful thing was being able to give oxygen to people with breathing difficulties.
I'd certainly recommend some training with your local LIVES-type group, just knowing the basics of what to do can make the difference. The annoying thing is that best practice seems to change regularly.

[Oakey]

So basically, you wouldn't recommend doing what that one guy did which was to rip the wire out of a table lamp and attempt to jump start his mate?

[K77 CTR]

Only helpful if the cardiac arrest happens at home, battery is charged and the pads are kept in date. Better to teach the whole family how to do good quality chest compressions, ensuring the patient is on the floor. Amount of times i see it when still on the bed. You can't restart a blue heart is the saying, keep the heart perfused and you'll give the ambulance crew the best chances.

[Silent1]

Gareth79 said:

rovermorris999 said:

If the call was within the village we used to manage 5 minutes regularly. More if an outlying house but better than nowt. Having your own is a good idea as long as there are at least two of you there, maybe get the neighbours involved? No doubt the 'professionals' would advise against it but defibs are pretty idiot proof, they'll only shock if needed. I don't think there's any law against it.

I think the only risk is that if it's not done correctly the defib won't fire and worse than just doing regular CPR until an ambulance arrives. Oh, also people need to keep clear of the patient, but the verbal instructions say that of course.

There's actually no recorded incidents (iirc) from touching a patient whilst shocking and I've seen a doctor do it multiple times to prove how you can't be shocked

[K77 CTR]

Silent1 said:

There's actually no recorded incidents (iirc) from touching a patient whilst shocking and I've seen a doctor do it multiple times to prove how you can't be shocked

I think in America they have started shocking people during compressions, as any time off the chest reduces the chances of survival.

[rovermorris999]

CPR is vital. The best bet would be to get your family and neighbours trained up. The Red Cross and St. John's do good courses. I went to a couple of callouts where the family had just stood there and watched their loved one die or nearly so because they just didn't know what to do. Very sad. One old lady just needed her head pulled back to open her airway and yet the carer who found her had left her slumped forward gurgling on the point of suffocation.

[neenaw]

I wouldn't be too bothered about a defib. Good quality chest compressions are the thing that will give someone the best chance of survival in a cardiac arrest (not a heart attack!)

In about 9 years in the ambulance service I can only think off the top of my head of about half a dozen cases where the defib has made any difference. In the vast majority of cases a bystander doing CPR would have been more help.

As others have said, look into community responder groups in your area. They do a fantastic job in more rural locations.