Roadside revival shows value of defibs

JOLENE WILLIAMS | Wednesday, October 27, 2010 12:04

FORTUNATE: Cycling enthusiast Brian Morgan was lucky to survive a heart attack during a training ride.

Glenn Taylor

Brian Morgan is certain that without a defibrillator he would not be here today.

Yesterday it was reported how Mr Morgan suffered a heart attack on the side of the Waiohiki Rd during his usual 100km weekend cycle.

He was lucky motorists saw him collapse and performed CPR. He was even more fortunate that the nearby Napier Golf Club stored an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) and the club's men's captain Russell Burns knew it was there.

Defibrillators, in Mr Burns' words, were "idiot-proof" and designed to be used by lay persons in case of emergency. Mr Burns had never used the machine before but was familiar with one through his work as an electrician.

Although some training was ideal, it was not necessary as the machines assessed the patient's heart and talked the operator through the easy three-step procedure.

The units delivered an electric shock to the heart during a cardiac arrest, freeing the blood flow that was constricted by spasms. The machine then monitored the patient's heart every two minutes, issuing further instruction if necessary.

Mr Burns said Mr Morgan was "in pretty bad shape" when he arrived. But two zaps with the life-saving device was enough to get Mr Morgan's heart pumping again, effectively saving his life.

The incident highlighted the value of storing defibrillators in isolated areas and populated public spaces like supermarkets, office blocks, sports stadiums and airports.

Last year 60 defibrillators, funded by Endeavour Community Trust, were distributed by the Hawke's Bay District Health Board emergency response team throughout the region.

Hawke's Bay was one of the few regions that had a defibrillator at the airport and the only region to have them in police incident cars.

The DHB response team provided staff training wherever defibrillators were distributed and kept up regular maintenance.

Emergency response advisor Sandra Bee said the chances of surviving a cardiac arrest increased the quicker a defibrillator was used.

"CPR keeps the blood pumping and someone's brain alive. The defibrillator shocks the heart and returns its beating motion. And that saves someone's life. In Hawke's Bay we are extremely lucky, and if someone collapses there should be a defibrillator not too far away that could make a difference before emergency services arrive," she said.

The next step was raising awareness so that people knew where to find a defibrillator in an emergency.

Over the next couple of weeks the DHB's website would show the location of every device in the region, while Gareth Jenkin, an Auckland paramedic, was taking up the challenge on a national scale.

Mr Jenkin was creating an online database of every defibrillator in the country. He hoped, with sponsorship, the database would be available via Google Maps and an iPhone application.

In the last 12 months, four people in Auckland suffered a cardiac arrest where there was a defibrillator on site, but carefully tucked away where nobody could find them.

Databases, like the DHB's and Mr Jenkin's could change that, so the location of defibrillators was as familiar as fire extinguishers.

Mr Jenkin said: "The way I see it, you would do a first aid course and [during that] show you how to use it. You'd look at where you live and work and where you go in the weekends and familiarise yourself with the locations."

In the second instance, the database could be used during a 111 dispatch call, so the defibrillator could be located and used until emergency services arrived.

Without defibrillation, the chances of surviving a cardiac arrest decreased chances by 10 per cent. Minutes, quite literally, meant life.

SEE EDITORIAL

Community AED Placements Hawkes Bay

Placed by HBDHB

Organisation	Address	Contact No.
Silver Fern Farms	Fraser Rd, Takapau	06 858  6016
NZ Police I-car	Station St, Napier	06 831 0700
NZ Police I-car	Station St, Napier	06 831 0700
NZ Police I-car	Station St, Napier	06 831 0700
NZ Police I-car	Station St, Napier	06 831 0700
Te Hauora O Te Wheke A Nuku	6 Ratau St, Mahia Beach	06 837 5649
Ngati Pahauwera Hauora	30 Putere Rd, Raupunga	06 837 6766
Wairoa Community Centre	Marine Parade West, Wairoa	06 838 3086
NZ Police I-car	72 Queen St, Wairoa	06 838 3874
NZ Police I-car	72 Queen St, Wairoa	06 838 3874
Nga Kaitiaki Hauroa O Waikaremoana	4 Rotten Row, Tuai	06 837 3780
Gas Alley	Cnr Paul and Lucknow St, Wairoa	06 838 3042
NZ Police I-car	Railway Rd, Hastings	06 873 0500
NZ Police I-car	Railway Rd, Hastings	06 873 0500
NZ Police I-car	Railway Rd, Hastings	06 873 0500
NZ Police I-car	Railway Rd, Hastings	06 873 0500
NZ Police I-car	Railway Rd, Hastings	06 873 0500
BP Service Station	174 Main Rd, Clive	06 870 0595
NZ Police I-car	Northumberland St, Waipukurau	06 858 9140
NZ Police I-car	Northumberland St, Waipukurau	06 858 9140
HB Airport	State Highway 1, Napier	06 835 1130
The Thirsty Whale	62 West Quay, Napier	06 835 8815
Cosmopolitan Club	226 Hastings St, Napier	06 835 1158
National Aquarium of NZ	Marine Parade, Napier	06 834 1404
City Medical	Wellesley Rd, Napier	06 835 4999
The Warehouse	319 Hastings St, Napier	06 835 2433
Onekawa New World	Maadi Rd, Napier	06 843 6146
Sideline Bar	Taradale Rd, Napier	06 843 4355
Mitre 10 Megastore	180 Prebensen Drive, Napier	06 833 8100
Pak'n'Save Supermarket	Tamatea Shopping Centre, Napier	06 843 3134
Billy Burkes Irish Bar	246 Gloucester St, Taradale	06 844 2697
Puketapu Hotel	Cnr Dartmoor And Puketapu Rds, Napier	06 844 7206
Waiohiki Golf Course	1215 State Highway 50, Waiohiki	06 844 7913
HB Golf Club	114 Valentine Rd, Hastings	06 879 8890
Camberley Court Motor Inn	801 Omahu Rd, Hastings	06 876 8119
Flaxmere BP	10 Swansea Rd, Hastings	06 879 5718
Mitre 10 Mega Store	300 St Aubyn St East, Hastings	06 873 8700
Kmart Shopping Centre	Cnr St Aubyn St East & Karamu Rds, Hastings	06 878 8599
Maraekakaho Rural Fire Party	Kereru Rd, Maraekakaho	06 874 9423
Hughes and Smyth Pharmacy	Cnr Heretaunga and Market Sts, Hastings	06 878 8208
Maraenui Golf Club	Te Awa Ave, Napier	06 835 8273
Waipawa BP	Main Rd, Waipawa	06 857 8034
Westpac Indoor Pool	10 River Tce, Waipukurau	06 858 8972
Otane Hotel	40 Higginson St, Otane	06 856 8171
Te Pohue Rural Fire Party	Ohurakura Rd, Te Pohue	06 878 0500
Swim Heretaunga	Swansea Rd, Hastings	06 879 7676
Cape Physio	116 Queen St East, Hastings	06 873 8560
Tumu Timbers	Maraekakaho Rd, Hastings	06 873 0997

Already in existence at beginning of project

Organisation	Address	Contact No.
Port of Napier	Breakwater Rd, Napier	06 833 4400
Information Centre	100 Marine Pde, Napier	06 834 1911
Dental on Raffles	106 Raffles St, Napier	06 835 6253
Saxon Dearing	62 Munro St, Napier	06 835 4998
Pacific Surf Club	Marine Pde, Napier	06 835 3821
Taradale Masonic Residential Home	15 Devonshire Pl, Taradale, Napier	06 845 9220
Puketitiri Rural Fire	Puketitiri Rd, Rissington, Putorino	06 878 0500
Putorino Rural Fire	Waikare Rd, Putorino	06 878 0500
RSA	Avenue Rd West, Hastings	06 878 8808
National Service Club	Market St, Hastings	06 878 9582
Hastings Golf Club	1523 Maraekakaho Rd, RD 5, Hastings	06 879 7206
Heinz Watties Ltd	513 King St North, Hastings	06 873 1696
Whakatu Coldstores	88 Anderson Rd, Whakatu, Hastings	06 870 0026
PPCS Pacific	Rangitane Rd, Hastings	06 873 7800
Havelock North New World	Porter Drive, Havelock North	06 877 8032
Havelock North Rural Fire	Karanema Drive, Havelock North	06 877 8692
Cape Kidnappers Golf Club	446 Clifton Rd, Te Awanga	06 875 1900
Ocean Beach Surf Club	Ocean Beach Rd, Hastings	06 874 7875
Waimarama Surf Club	136 Napier Rd, Havelock North	06 874 6601
Waimarama Rural Fire	Waimarama Rd, Havelock North	06 878 0500
Pak n Save	Heretaunga St West, Hastings	06 876 6053
Splash Planet	Grove Rd, Hastings	06 873 8033
Wairoa Community Centre	Marine Pde, Wairoa	06 838 3086
Tuai Rural Fire	Tuai Main Rd, Waikaremoana	0800 300 400
Tuai Power Station Genesis Energy	Main Rd, Tuai, RD 5, Wairoa	06 837 2700
Te Kupenga Hauora Ahuriri	5 Sale St, Napier	06 835 1840
Gahagans Unichem Pharmacy	131 Emerson St, Napier	06 835 8525
Breakers Café and Bar	Marine Pde, Napier	06 835 8689
Aquatic Centre	Maadi Rd, Napier	06 834 4150
Onga Onga Rural Fire	32 Bridge St, Onga Onga	0800 347 332
Porangahau Volunteer Ambulance	Keppel St, Porangahau	0800 347 332
Tikokino Rural Fire	31 Owen St, Tikokino	0800 347 332
RSA	34 Vautier St, Napier	06 835 7629
Hastings Girls High School	Pakowhai Rd, Hastings	06 873 1133
Pettigrew Green Arena	480 Gloucester St, Napier	06 845 9330
Westshore Surf Club	Ferguson Ave, Napier	06 835 9553