We’ve been continuing to offer free community training in performing CPR and using defibrillators, with our latest session held at Coggeshall Cricket Club. This is a local sporting club like many others you will find around the country. They have teams across all age groups and levels, whether you want to play competitively or just for fun. Following our offer of completely free CPR and defib training, they were keen to take us up on this, to help to keep all of their players and spectators safe.
What do you need to know to carry out CPR?
One of the main questions we get asked is how do you actually know when to carry out CPR. Some people have seen the adverts that have run in the past from organisations like the British Heart Foundation so have a bit of an idea of what to do. But they are often nervous about knowing when to do it. We took members of the cricket club through the process – the first step being how to assess whether someone has had a cardiac arrest. We also spoke about what they should do if there is something lodged in a person’s throat, if they are unable to breathe or if they have stopped breathing. Furthermore, we spoke about how to approach CPR and why it is so crucial.
Having an understanding of CPR and just how vital it is will help people to know the importance of doing it as soon as possible. Along with the skills of actually performing it, this combination could provide valuable time before paramedics arrive, increasing the chance of survival.
Using a defibrillator
As with many people we teach, we get a lot of questions around using a defibrillator. This is a key part of our CPR training because a defibrillator is an incredibly simple device that can make a significant difference. There seems to be a perception that a defib is a complicated machine that could do more damage than harm. We hope to completely dispel this misconception! In fact, the cricket club are now planning on purchasing their very own defibrillator. They have seen from our training that anyone can use it and the impact it may have is incredible.
Do you need CPR and defibrillator training?
These courses are so important to us, as we know that learning these skills really can save lives. As we have written about before on our website, when Christian Eriksen had a cardiac arrest during a football match he was playing as part of the Euros 2020, he was lucky enough to have teams of medical professionals at hand. But local sporting clubs or organisations don’t have that luxury. And you don’t want to rely on the off-chance that a player or spectator happens to be a doctor, nurse or paramedic.
If you are part of a community group or sports team, get in touch and we would be happy to arrange free CPR and defibrillator training for you. We want to share our skills and knowledge as widely as possible in the hope that should anyone be in a situation where they see someone have a cardiac arrest, they can immediately step forward to help.
Vital Workplace Training has helped at other community groups like training the staff for a community event in Coggeshall for the Big Park Project.
We work across Essex, London and the wider East Anglia region. So wherever you are, if you need first aid, defibrillator or CPR training, give us a call.