Life-saving equipment available across the borough

An initiative to provide access to life-saving equipment in Blackburn and Darwen town centres has been rolled out by Blackburn with Darwen Council.

Automatic defibrillators have been installed outside Darwen Town Hall and in Blackburn Market. A third defibrillator is set to be installed on the front of Blackburn Town Hall imminently.

These new defibrillators complement those newly installed across Blackburn with Darwen Council buildings for staff use and in other longstanding locations across the borough including children’s centres, leisure centres and schools.

The defibrillators can be used safely and effectively without previous training and their use is not restricted to trained rescuers.

Defibrillators are funded through the Council’s public health budget as part of a wider programme of health and wellbeing improvement. The project is supported by Heart Town in association with the British Heart Foundation. It coincides with an idea posted by a staff member on Our Ideas.

It is a stark reality that anybody who suffers cardiac arrest will die within just a few minutes unless rapid action, including CPR and defibrillation, is taken immediately.

Councillor Mohammed Khan, Executive Member for Health and Adult Social Care, said:

“After suffering a cardiac arrest the person in front of you is dead – you can’t make things worse but you can give them a chance to live again. The chances of surviving cardiac arrest increase dramatically if defibrillation is administered as quickly as possible. I find it quite reassuring to know that anybody who suffers a cardiac arrest in Blackburn and Darwen town centres and across Council buildings will be very close to a defibrillator. This is a fantastic project.”

Barbara Dunn, British Heart Foundation Community Fundraising Manager for Lancashire said:

“We’re delighted to work in partnership on this initiative that will see the people of Blackburn with Darwen benefit from this life-saving equipment. These devices can help save lives in the first few minutes of a cardiac arrest and before an ambulance can arrive. They need no special training and you can’t put a price on saving a life.”

Cheryl Pickstock, Chain of Survival Lead for Lancashire North West Ambulance Service, said:

“This initiative really promotes the chain of survival partnership that NWAS have with Blackburn with Darwen Council. Our mission is to reduce mortality through out of hospital cardiac arrest and these defibrillators can really assist with this. Defibrillators can be used on all ages including children, they are programmed to only deliver a shock when absolutely necessary and cannot cause any further harm to a cardiac arrest victim.”