Staffordshire University has teamed up with a local charity to produce a new video highlighting how prompt defibrillation could save a person’s life.

The Heart of Weston was founded in memory of Chris and Steve Phillips, who tragically died of cardiac arrest, aged 28 and 29 respectively.

The charity raises awareness of Young Sudden Cardiac Death and promotes CRY (Cardiac Risk in the Young) cardiac screening to help reduce the risk of young people dying suddenly and unexpectedly – 12 young people die of a cardiac arrest in the UK every week. It campaigns to maintain a defibrillator situated at Weston Village Hall, the brothers’ home village, as well as providing CRY cardiac screening for 14-35, year-olds, ECGs for adults and basic first aid training.

The video features Paramedic Science, Course Leader Tim Davies (Pictured below).

Every year in the UK tens of thousands of people suffer a cardiac arrest. The video shows how to follow the chain of survival by identifying when someone is in cardiac arrest, when to call for appropriate help, how to administer early and effective CPR, and how early defibrillation using a public access defibrillator can drastically increase the chances of a person recovering from a cardiac arrest.

Early CPR can double, even quadruple the chances of a person surviving a cardiac arrest. Unfortunately, in the UK only 40% of victims ever receive CPR, yet effective use of a defibrillator within three to five minutes of the cardiac arrest can produce survival rates of 50%, even 70%. But each minute of delay reduces the chances of survival by 10%.

The message contained in the video is that anyone can try and save a life using CPR and a defibrillator – providing they know what to do.

Watch the video at: www.theheartofweston.org