Defibrillator drive as Hebburn social club raises money for two life-saving pieces of equipment

Elmfield Social Club in Hebburn is looking to raise £2,000 for two pieces of the life-saving equipment for the inside and outside of the premises.

The defibrillator in the club will be operative during club hours and the one outside the club will have have 24-hour access with a code open to the community to use in the event on a cardiac arrest.

Grahame Tinmouth of Elmfield Club said: “It should be a priority for areas to get this sort of kit as it's time critical and getting a ambulance is not guaranteed anymore.”

On average 30,000 people die each year from out of hospital Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA), 620 of these are people under the age of 35 and 270 of these deaths happen to children within schools. If defibrillation takes place within the first three minutes of a SCA, the patient’s chances of survival increase by upwards of 80%.

The social club is aiming to become a focal point for the community offering groups for the elderly and disabled through the day time.

He added: “We will be doing training in the club for 24 people to start and expanding that over time a local family who lost there dad have raised a lot of the money for the first one and we have had a brass plate made for that one.

A ceremony will be held when the first defibrillator is installed inside the club.

If you’d like to donate to the cause you can do so by visiting https://www.aeddonate.org.uk/projects/elmfieldsocialclub/

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