Cardiac arrest survivors and their life-savers are supporting Yorkshire Ambulance Service’s ambitious plan to teach CPR to more than 35,000 students across the region on Restart a Heart Day.
More than 750 off-duty ambulance staff, Community First Responders and volunteers from partner organisations will visit 172 secondary schools – more than ever before – including 43 in North Yorkshire (see list below) to provide the life-saving lesson on Wednesday 16 October 2024.
According to preliminary data from the University of Warwick, Yorkshire Ambulance Service clinicians were successful in restarting 974 hearts in 2023 (compared to 933 the previous year). To help them restart even more hearts, it’s vital that members of the public act immediately to perform CPR when someone has collapsed and stopped breathing.
Jason Carlyon, Community Engagement Manager with Yorkshire Ambulance Service, said:
What happens in the first few minutes after someone has suffered a cardiac arrest is vital. If bystanders can call 999 and start CPR while sending someone to retrieve the nearest defibrillator, that person’s chances of survival can triple.
We know about three students who took part in Restart a Heart Day last year who have since used CPR to help save the lives of parents which is incredible and really emphasises the importance of our campaign and knowing what to do.
The 11th annual mass CPR training session is supported by cardiac arrest patients and life-savers including Charlotte Hogg, of Boroughbridge, who helped to save her father’s life when she was a teenager. She will be helping with CPR training at The Forest School in Knaresborough (see attached case study for more information).
Helen Smith, Dispatch Team Leader in the Emergency Operations Centre at Yorkshire Ambulance Service added:
Learning how to perform CPR takes just a few moments and can give you the confidence and skills to act and change a life forever. However, if you do come across someone in cardiac arrest and are not sure what to do, when you ring 999 we will talk you through how to do effective CPR and how to access your nearest defibrillator. But whatever your skill level, it’s vital that you act fast.
