Students and staff members at Sarum St Paul’s School in Salisbury have just been provided with a new automatic defibrillator as a key part of its first aid equipment.

Head Lizzie Weavers told the Salisbury Journal that the School Council recognised just how important it was to have a defibrillator on site and were incredibly driven where their fundraising efforts were concerned, raising more than £1,400 for the device.

“We are delighted to launch our school and local community defibrillator. This was paid for through fundraising events organised and led by our School Council,” she went on to say.

Staff have also been given training as to how to use the defibrillator, with South Western Ambulance Service coming to the school on June 26^th to show them how it can be used in the event of a cardiac arrest.

Defibrillators work by restoring the heart rhythm if someone does go into cardiac arrest. The earlier it is used, the better the person in question has of surviving.

It’s worth bearing in mind, however, that while training is essential you can use these devices if you haven’t had any. You can’t shock someone accidentally if their heart is beating normally and modern devices have been designed so that even if you’ve had no medical training you can still use them.

The pads come with a diagram on them to show you where to put them on the body and a voice prompt will come on to talk you through the steps of using the machine.

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