The modest gift of a cardiac defibrillator by a Dorset Rotary club is having an impact on a wide section of the community.
Christchurch Rotary donated the device to the St Joseph’s Church in Purewell, and at a club meeting, it was explained how the defibrillator is valued by the community.
Roger Adams, who is involved with the maintenance of the church buildings, and Nick Coghlan, Chairman of St Joseph’s Church Pastoral Council, offered their thanks to the Rotary club for raising the funds to buy the equipment.
This has been installed at the church and is now available for use in the event of anyone collapsing from a cardiac arrest whilst visiting the premises in Purewell.
Well trained first-aiders are on site and able to assess any such emergency and administer life-saving treatment with the machine, thankfully the need has not yet arisen.
Nick and Roger explained how large numbers of people use these facilities every week, so the availability of the defibrillator was of great importance.”
St Joseph’s Church now has four components – a presbytery, a church, a parish hall and an old chapel.
Nick and Roger explained how large numbers of people use these facilities every week, so the availability of the defibrillator was of great importance.
For example, the Christchurch food bank is run from St Joseph’s and at least 200 people are coming in and out to this per week.
The church itself seats 270, but it has been known to accommodate 400 people at peak times.
They said it was reassuring to know that emergency help was now available in the event of a medical crisis.
Christchurch Rotary is among a number of clubs across Great Britain & Ireland who have funded defibrillators in their communities.
A defibrillator is a device that gives a high energy electric shock to the heart of someone who is in cardiac arrest.
This high energy shock is called defibrillation, and it’s an essential part in trying to save the life of someone who’s in cardiac arrest.
