Community Defib Project Takes Off

The 20th AED (automated external defibrillator) was installed in the Hawkesbury LGA on Saturday, July 17 as part of the Community Defib Project.

Founder and Chair of the project Sophie Wills said the uptake in the Hawkesbury LGA had been incredible.

“The communities within the Hawkesbury can see the value in the project and have been supporting it,” Ms Wills said.

“As a Hawkesbury local, I know how special this community is. I know how much of a privilege it is to live where we do, but we also must be realistic about how far we are from help. We must come together as a community to create a more prepared and safer community.”

The aim of the project is to give the community the tools it needs to respond to a sudden cardiac arrest and possibly save a life.

A community defibrillator is a device that can be accessed by anyone in the community round the clock in order to respond to a sudden cardiac arrest. Ms Wills said that many communities within the Hawkesbury area were significantly disadvantaged in their access to emergency medical assistance. St Albans is over an hour away from medical help.

“We know that during a cardiac arrest, with every minute that goes by without a defibrillator, the victim’s chance of survival is reduced by 7 to 10 per cent,” she said.

“In layman’s terms, that means no more than 10 minutes to access and implement an AED. As a paramedic, my first line of treatment for a patient suffering a sudden cardiac arrest is defibrillation. This means that communities such as St Albans now don’t have to wait an hour, they can access a defib within 10 minutes of every resident in the community and start treatment they otherwise wouldn’t have had.”

The devices are easy to operate and are part of basic life support (CPR and AED). Ms Wills said that while she could not speak statistically in terms of CPR training, her observations were that there weren’t enough people trained in the wider community.

To date, the Community Defib Project has expanded throughout the Hawkesbury LGA, with many communities now involved, including St Albans, Cumberland Reach, Upper Colo, Blaxlands Ridge, Sackville-Ebenezer and Oakville-Maraylya-Pitt Town. As part of their mission, the project offers training to all communities involved.

“We would ultimately like to see every community involved in the Community Defib Project, particularly vulnerable communities across NSW and the country,” Ms Wills said.

All up there are 45 units, which includes 25 outside of the Hawkesbury area. If your community would like to get involved with the project, contact the team at info@communitydefibproject.org.au.

The 20 community AEDs in the Hawkesbury LGA include:
#2 - Webbs Creek Ferry Crossing, Wisemans Ferry
#4 - Sackville Ferry Crossing, Sackville
#8 - 335 Settlers Rd, Lower Macdonald
#10 - Corner Wright’s Creek Rd and Settlers Rd, Wrights Creek
#13 - Macdonald Valley Public School, Central Macdonald
#15 - 602 Chaseling Rd Sth, Leets Vale
#16 - Del Rio Riverside Resort, Leets Vale (current out of order post floods)
#18 - 251 Greens Rd, Lower Portland
#19 - 377 St Albans Rd, Lower Macdonald
#20 - Corner Wollombi Rd and Wharf St, St Albans
#23 - 1056 Upper Macdonald Rd, Upper Macdonald
#29 - St Phillips Church, 1737 Upper Macdonald Rd, Upper Macdonald
#30 - 42 Walmsley Rd, Lower Macdonald
#32 - 533 Wollombi Rd, St Albans
#36 - 139 Wollombi Rd, Fernances
#37 - 49 Gorricks Run, Upper Macdonald
#38 - 1389 Upper Colo Rd, Upper Colo
#43 - Corner Comelroy Rd and Blaxlands Ridge Rd, Blaxlands Ridge
#44 - 1907 Upper Colo Rd, Upper Colo
#45 - 151 Cedar Ridge Rd, Kurrajong

• Topics:

• Community
• Health & Wellness