The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has identified 10 regions across the UK where the distance to the nearest defibrillator is so great that residents are considered to be living in "defibrillator deserts". In one rural area, the average journey to retrieve a device would take 19 minutes and 20 seconds.
A cardiac arrest occurs when the heart suddenly stops pumping blood around the body. It often strikes without warning and is different from a heart attack, which happens when a blocked artery stops blood reaching the heart.
Symptoms of a cardiac arrest
Someone experiencing a cardiac arrest may fall down, lose consciousness or become unresponsive, and can stop breathing normally. Anyone who sees these signs should dial 999 and start CPR or use a defibrillator immediately.
Why every minute counts
The BHF says only around one in 10 people who have a cardiac arrest outside hospital survive. Prompt CPR or defibrillation can more than double the chance of survival, but for every minute without CPR and defibrillation, the chance of survival falls by up to 10%.
No previous experience or training is needed to operate a defibrillator, as the device gives clear instructions. It delivers an electrical shock to stop a dangerous heart rhythm, while CPR keeps blood and oxygen moving around the body.
The 10 defibrillator deserts
- Barking and Dagenham
- Liverpool
- Southampton
- Nottingham
- Wrexham
- Newport
- Airdrie, Hamilton and Motherwell
- Bonnybridge, Croy and Cumbernauld
- West Tyrone
- Cusher
In West Tyrone, Northern Ireland, the average time to access a defibrillator is 19 minutes and 20 seconds, which can severely reduce the chances of surviving a cardiac arrest.
Funding and the national defibrillator network
The BHF is urging leaders in these areas to apply to the Community Defibrillator Funding Programme for one of the 400 defibrillators available. The new devices will be registered on The Circuit, the national defibrillator network that helps emergency services locate the machines when they are needed.
The Circuit holds the locations of more than 120,000 defibrillators across the UK, but the devices are not evenly distributed. In some areas, the long distance to the nearest defibrillator leaves residents stranded in what is known as a defibrillator desert.
