Nationwide: Major high street bank rolls out defibrillators and bleed control kits across 605 branches
Nationwide Building Society makes defibrillators and bleeding control kits available across its network of 605 branches.
This initiative, carried out in partnership with Visa, will see vital equipment installed by the end of the year.
Having completed the rollout, St John Ambulance will deliver life-saving training to 4,000 staff across the country and the local community.
This commitment to public safety is consistent with Nationwide’s commitment to keep all of its branches open until at least 2030.
Amanda Beech, Nationwide’s director of retail services, said: “By transforming our branches into visible, emergency centres, we’re making it easier to access help when every second counts.
“Most importantly, we also offer training to all of our branch colleagues before expanding this training to the communities we serve.
“We want more people to feel prepared, confident and ready to take action when it matters most.”
Professor Andrew Hartle, St John Ambulance’s chief medical officer, said: “We are delighted to be working with Nationwide and Visa on this project, which perfectly meets St John Ambulance’s mission to put the power of first aid into the hands of everyone.
“I am confident that with hundreds more defibrillators and bleeding control kits available to the public across the UK, and thousands more people confident of using them, many more lives will be saved in our communities.”
What is a defibrillator and when should you use it?
“A defibrillator is an electrical device that delivers a pulse to the heart to help bring people out of heart attack,” explains James McNulty-Ackroyd, clinical project lead and paramedic at St John Ambulance.
They’re often labeled as an AED, which is “an automatic external defibrillator and senses that using one would be beneficial to the patient. When we talk about cardiac arrest, we’re talking about shockable and non-shockable, and the AED is useful in situations where the heart is in particularly shockable rhythms,” he says.
When used, the electric shock stuns the heart, returning it to normal function “from the right shoulder to the left armpit.”
The AED knows when to work after the pads are applied because it “automatically recognizes the rhythm, like an ECG, and does not deliver a shock if the heart is not in one of the relevant rhythms.”
In case of cardiac arrest, you only need a defibrillator.
“These should only be used when the patient is not breathing normally or their heart has stopped,” explains McNulty-Ackroyd. “Their breathing can be like a fish out of water, with no rhythm, no real intake of air, or purposeless breathing.
“In this case, the heart is not pumping, it’s not working, but there is some movement. They need a defibrillator and high-quality CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation).”
