A Defibrillator Directory listing every 24/7 access defibrillator (defib) in Crewe has gone live. The Directory is hosted on the Crewe Town Council website and contains details of locations of each defib (including the What3words reference) and availability of bleed kits.
Crewe Town Council has purchased seven of the seventeen defibs, which have been sited in key locations across Crewe, in order to help save lives in the event of a cardiac arrest. The latest Crewe Town Council defibrillator was unveiled last week at Mill House on Brook Street in Crewe by the Mayor of Crewe and Saskia Lightburn-Ritchie of My CWA.
The equipment has been funded through Crewe Town Council’s Wellbeing Fund – Community Plan Committee. All units have been registered on the national defibrillator database to enable 999 callers to be directed to the nearest location.
If a medical emergency is experienced near a defibrillator location, a call should be made to 999 for further guidance and to obtain the access code (if appropriate).
The Defibrillator Directory can be accessed from the home page of the Crewe Town Council website, or through this direct link:
www.crewetowncouncil.gov.uk/council-services-2/crewe-community-engagement/defibrillator-directory/
A defibrillator is a device that gives an electric shock to the heart through the chest wall to someone in cardiac arrest. Without defibrillation a person in cardiac arrest will die. The North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust state that using a defibrillator within five minutes can result in survival rates as high as 70% and that otherwise, less than 1 in 10 people will survive a cardiac arrest.
All of the Crewe Town Council owned defib boxes also contain bleed kits, which have been funded by Cheshire East Council and are also registered with the emergency services. These can be used in the event of a traumatic injury and each kit contains:
- Gloves
- Medical shears
- Haemostatic gauze to pack a wound
- A chest seal
- Trauma dressing
- Tourniquet (to stop blood flow and loss)
The Mayor of Crewe, Councillor Dennis Straine-Francis, commented: “We are delighted to have funded and installed seven defibrillators for Crewe. If they save even one life, it will be worthwhile. The Directory is a great idea, bringing all of the information together in one place and will help Crewe residents be aware of where they can access a defib if they need one.”
