Lifesaving application to identify nearest defibrillator launched by ambulance service

The South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) has launched the app – named the AED Locator - as part of its Start a Heart campaign. It locates over 600 Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and Oxfordshire and could help local people save the life of a person suffering sudden cardiac arrest.
The app will provide members of the public with the building name and exact address of the nearest AED and also details of its exact location within the building.
It will also provide information on how to perform CPR on adults, children and infants, including hands-only CPR, until an ambulance or paramedic arrives.
SCAS is the first ambulance service in the UK to launch such an app.
At current, it is only available to download to iPhone and iPad devices, however, according to SCAS, it is currently being developed for Blackberry and Android systems.
It was also revealed that SCAS hopes to develop the app to identify AED’s which are available 24-hours a day.
The divisional medical director for SCAS Hampshire Professor Charles Deakin, who is also chairman of the advanced life support committee on the European Resuscitation Council, said: "Statistics show that in cases of sudden cardiac arrest outside hospital, only one in 10 people survive.
“However, when bystanders provide CPR and use AEDs before emergency services arrive, as many as four in 10 victims survive.
"This innovative new app from SCAS is therefore a real lifesaver.
“Modern AEDs are incredibly simple to use - even a child could do it - and the ability of people to be more confident in giving CPR and to quickly locate their nearest AED and use it on a person suffering a suspected cardiac arrest could save thousands of lives each year.”
Consultant emergency care practitioner at SCAS, Mark Ainsworth-Smith, said: “We would encourage the public to let us know of any new AED locations or if they wish to purchase an AED for their community. We can then make sure that it is included in the AED location information that we hold.”
The AED Locator app can be downloaded from the Apple iTunes store.