IF someone in the family were to have a serious accident or collapse from a heart attack at home, the first reaction for most people is to call an ambulance.
And while that’s right and proper, the Ennis Road first responders group is offering free classes for anyone who wants to be their family’s own first responder and give help that could be the difference between life and death.
The group is inviting people to avail of their next free of charge “CPR and AED” courses in Cleeves Factory on the first Monday morning and second Wednesday evening of each month, starting in September.
“Cardiac Arrest is one of those incidents where the patient needs immediate help and time is critical,” said spokeswoman, Rosie Cleary.
“The Ennis Road Community First Responder Group are a community based group trained to respond to four major life threatening incidents.
“We work in conjunction with the National Ambulance Service and aim to be the first response to a call in a critical incident. However until a person makes the call, they are their family’s first responder until we arrive.
“We aim to train people in life saving skills for those first vital minutes, improving the chances of survival. The earlier the intervention the higher the survival rate.”
Next courses are in September, October and November. Anyone interested should contact Ennis Road Community First Responders
Linda.wixted@ennisroadcfr.ie or tel: 087-2332778
Rosie.cleary@ennisroadcfr.ie or tel: 087-2745361
Meanwhile, the Templeglantine Community First Responders, who have gone live since April, are having their official launch on September 10 at the Devon Inn Hotel, Templeglantine.
The voluntary group also train to be first on the scene in the vital minutes before an ambulance or paramedics can arrive.
A spokeswoman for the Templeglantine team said: “We would be very grateful for any sponsorship that could be provided to our group. It promises to be an evening of fun for all the family but also an opportunity to educate our community regarding the potential symptoms of a heart attack, stroke etc. Early detection is key.”
The group volunteers have managed to raise sufficient funds to get up and running but there are the added cost of additional defibrillators, maintenance of defibrillators and additional items such as high viz jackets, gloves, dressings, wipes etc which are costs that will be recurring. The cost of equipping one volunteer with a defibrillator is €1,500.
The group an be contacted on Facebook ‘Templeglantine CFR’ and Instagram ‘templeglantinecfr’)
Any business that would like to donate can lodge into their account, in AIB, The Square, Newcastle West, Templeglantine Community First Responders, IBAN: IE 40 AIBK 9352 3919 5981 84, BIC: AIBKIE2D
“When donating please add the name of your business so we can acknowledge your contribution,” the spokeswoman said.
