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JoinÊtheÊdrive
toÊsaveÊlives
atÊyourÊclub!
WeÊhaveÊaÊsimpleÊgoal;ÊtoÊ
reduceÊtheÊnumberÊofÊheartÊ
attackÊrelatedÊdeathsÊatÊ
sportingÊvenues.
WeÊaimÊtoÊempowerÊyourÊ
clubÊtoÊreactÊtoÊitsÊownÊ
life-threateningÊemergencyÊ
withÊtheÊunderstanding,ÊskillÊ
andÊequipmentÊtoÊdoÊsoÊ
priorÊtoÊambulanceÊarrival.
WeÊareÊaboutÊprovidingÊ
saferÊvenuesÊforÊplayers,Ê
officialsÊandÊspectatorsÊofÊ
yourÊcommunity.
TheÊexperienceÊofÊlosingÊ
aÊSon,ÊBrotherÊbestÊfriendÊ
andÊteamÊmateÊhaveÊdrivenÊ
usÊtoÊensureÊtheÊsameÊ
doesnÕtÊhappenÊtoÊ
yourÊclub.
WeÊhaveÊtailoredÊaÊ
comprehensiveÊdefibrillatorÊ
packageÊwithÊsportsÊclubsÊ
inÊmind.ÊTheÊlevelÊofÊ
sponsorshipÊrequiredÊisÊ
minimalÊinÊcomparisonÊtoÊ
losingÊaÊlife.
PutÊyourÊclubÊfirstÊandÊ
contactÊusÊtoday.
VisitÊusÊatÊ
www.defibforlife.org.au
ÊwhereÊyouÊcanÊ
registerÊyourÊclubÊtoÊapplyÊforÊaÊDefibrillatorÊtoÊbeÊ
installed.ÊAlternativelyÊyouÊcanÊcontactÊourÊorganisationÊ
byÊemailingÊusÊwithÊyourÊClubÊNameÊandÊContact:Ê
info@defibforlife.org.au
www.defibforlife.org.au
NoÊoneÊshouldÊhaveÊtoÊsufferÊtheÊpainÊ
ofÊsuddenlyÊlosingÊaÊfamilyÊmember.Ê
ToÊassistÊusÊinÊreducingÊtheÊrisksÊofÊ
thisÊhappeningÊtoÊyouÊpleaseÊsupportÊÊ
DefibÊYourÊClub,ÊForÊLife!Ê
TheMissingLink-Defibrillation
survived his cardiac arrest following effective CPR from his club
trainers, early defibrillation from Paramedic’s who arrived soon
after the collapse, and subsequent defibrillation whilst he was
being rushed to hospital. He underwent what was described as
simple cardio-thoracic surgery and is expected to fully recover.
Defibrillators are very simple to use and require little training.
They are reliable, relatively cost effective and most countries have
clear regulations to protect the layperson from liability. Defib Your
Club For Life is seeking to get this message of survival out to the
community. To provide sporting clubs with automatic defibrillators
and an education program arming them with vital survival tools
when an emergency occurs.
We urge responsible governments and ruling sporting bodies to
strengthen the chain of survival by putting Automatic Defibrillators
in clubs. By having the tools in the community, at places
where people congregate, we can reduce the number of heart
attack related deaths that occur at sporting venues. The more
defibrillators out there, the more lives we will save.
You can help by donating to Defib Your Club For Life at
www.defibforlife.org.au
Sudden cardiac arrest does not discriminate, it affects all
age groups, races and genders. 1 in every 1000 people
has an undiagnosed heart complaint, and a cardiac arrest
can occur without prior warning signs or symptoms.
These can be otherwise active and fit people.
Sadly, this affects the young. Some in the prime of their
lives playing the sport they love. “DefibYour Club, For Life”,
a non for profit organization was established following
the sudden death of Stephen Buckman, a 19 year old
Australian rules footballer at Rupertswood Football Club
near Melbourne. Stephen collapsed suffering a cardiac
arrest after training and despite the great efforts of club
medical staff, was unable to be revived.
Off duty that day, Mobile Intensive Care Paramedic,
Andrew White was one of the people who was at the
club when Stephen suffered his cardiac arrest. Sadly
he had seen the circumstances before. Well trained,
knowledgeable medical staff executing Cardio Pulmonary
Resuscitation (CPR), waiting for the Paramedic support
to arrive, but with no ready access to an Automatic
Defibrillator. Andrew established Defib Your Club, For
Life to address this issue of early access to Automatic
Defibrillators.
When a person suffers a cardiac arrest it is critical that:
• Help is called
• CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation) is
commenced
• Defibrillation is applied
• Advanced Medical Care is applied
This is referred to as the “Chain of Survival”.
Early intervention is what saves lives. For every one
minute following a cardiac arrest there is a 10% less
chance of survival, by 10 minutes there is only a very
remote chance of survival.
The earlier a person receives defibrillation, the higher the
chance of survival, therefore ideally defibrillation in less
than five minutes is more likely to have the best outcome.
The month of May 2010 saw several young football players loose
their lives in similar circumstances to that of Stephen. Heath was
30, he left behind a wife and two children - he also collapsed at
training. Nathan, he was the youngest at 17, he collapsed just
minutes before the final siren, and Jason, 33 died whilst playing
in a game in memory of his grandfather who had been a legend of
the club and had only passed away two weeks earlier.
Victims of cardiac arrest can be saved if a defibrillator is
immediately available. None of these players had a defibrillator
immediately available. If we are to see any improvement in the
survival rates from these events, there is a need for access to
community defibrillators. At the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)
there is a survival rate of 85% of people who experience a sudden
cardiac arrest. Compare this to only a 7% chance elsewhere in
our communities. Automatic defibrillators are available at the
MCG.
Early defibrillation is by far the most vital component in the chain
of survival, but it still remains to be the weakest link in Australian
sporting clubs, and more often than not a missing link.
Recently a boy of 13 playing Australian rules football suffered a
cardiac arrest during a game. He was successfully resuscitated
Article by Andrew White, Founding Director, Defib Your Club For Life!
Insight