DONATIONS of defibrillators to local businesses could save lives in the event of a heart attack.
A defibrillator is a device which delivers a therapeutic dose of electrical energy to a person's heart when it has stopped pumping.
In the event of a sudden cardiac arrest (heart attack) a rapid response is vital.
Every minute the victim is not defibrillated they are losing a 10 per cent chance of survival and, after 10 minutes, the chances of recovery are virtually nil.
Bridgetown and Northcliffe have each received defibrillators donated by as part of the Heart Start giveaway, a partnership between St John and Lotterywest.
They were presented just before Christmas by St John Ambulance Warren Districts community paramedic Gary Wilcox.
The Bridgetown unit is in The Stables IGA, while the Northcliffe unit is in the Northcliffe Soccer Club.
The Heart Start initiative has provided 100 defibrillators to community and not for profit groups.
The Bridgetown St John sub centre has also bought four extra defibrillators which are located around Bridgetown and Greenbushes, at Blackwood Fresh, The Bridgetown News Agency, The Recreation Centre and Greenbushes Roadhouse.
Paramedic Gary Wilcox said the Heartstart Automated External Defibrillators gave victims of sudden cardiac arrest a much better chance of survival.
"These donations will empower people living in these towns to potentially save someone's life by using the defibrillator in the event of a sudden cardiac arrest," he said.
"The device is easy to use even if you haven't got any knowledge of First Aid and we are delighted that these communities have invested in these machines."
The defibrillators are also linked into the St John Community First Responder program which creates a direct contact between St John Ambulance WA, the triple zero (000) call centre, local communities and organisations.
This link enables individuals to provide immediate assistance to cardiac arrest victims in that time-critical period before an ambulance arrives when it matters most.
Mr Wilcox praised the Bridgetown sub-centre for getting on board with Com munity First Responder in such a big way.
"Full credit to them as ultimately this will improve this community's resilience in responding to sudden cardiac arrest," he said.
