St John Ambulance CEO, Adrian Watts, said having quick access to a defibrillator could save the lives of up to 100 Canberrans a year.
Yet, in Canberra, as in nearly all cities and towns in Australia, there is no requirement to have defibrillators installed in public buildings.
This is not only a failure of governments to protect their citizens by providing proven healthcare solutions, but also a missed financial opportunity to save hundreds of millions of dollars annually in treating sudden cardiac arrest victims – funds which could be redeployed to other areas of the healthcare system.
YELLOW WIGGLE, Greg Page, has said that a defibrillator “played a major part in saving my life. I believe that all Australians should have the same chance of survival that I had.” Page is on a mission to have defibrillators deployed more widely via his charity, Heart of the Nation.
Canberran Opposition spokesperson for health, Leanne Castley, called on the ACT Government to install defibrillators in government buildings across Canberra, including in schools and workplaces.
“Less than half (38 of 89) of ACT government schools have defibrillators on campus and Canberra has the opportunity to lead the nation with this life-saving initiative,” Ms Castley said.
“Every life in Canberra that we lose is one too many.”
This is a proven solution and would be a sensible investment by the government. Castley backed up her call by introducing a motion to the ACT Legislative Assembly on 23 March 2022 and called for a public education campaign and for the government to examine installing defibrillators on all Canberra buses.
While the ACT government prevaricates (as do most other Australian governments), the government of Malaysia (March 25) has made it mandatory for the installation of automated external defibrillators in public facilities by 2025.
Similarly, Vancouver, Canada, recently approved a motion that will place 1,000 Automated External Defibrillators, as well as first aid supplies, throughout the city.
The trend is mirrored elsewhere, including Swansea in Wales, San Diego in California, Mumbai in India…
C’mon, Australia, we can do better!!
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