The Brimbank postcode 3021 has one of the highest number of sudden cardiac arrest cases in Victoria, and an alarmingly low rate of life-saving defibrillators registered in that community.
These statistics have led St John of Ambulance Victoria to select this postcode – made up of St Albans, Kings Park and Kealba – as its second location to trial its life-saving program called Defib in Your Street.
Brimbank Council will partner with St John of Ambulance Victoria to achieve some life-saving outcomes through this initiative.
As part of Defib in Your Street, Brimbank Council will pay for the installation of three publicly available defibrillators. Currently there are only 10 defibrillators in this postcode, and none are available 24/7. St John Ambulance aims to gradually roll out 30 defibrillators in this postcode. Once this is complete most residents living in postcode 3021 will be within 400 meters of a defibrillator 24 hours a day.
Brimbank Deputy Mayor Cr Ranka Rasic said Brimbank Council was proud to partner with St John Ambulance Victoria to deliver this trailblazing project to the 3021 postcode.
“The suburbs that make up this postcode – St Albans, Kings Park and Kealba – were chosen for the second trial of this project because they have one of Victoria’s highest levels of sudden cardiac arrest cases. It also has very low levels of publicly available defibrillators and community members trained to perform CPR.
“But the good news is that this partnership with St John Ambulance has the potential to drastically turn things around, and save many lives. We hope the community in this postcode take advantage of the opportunities to receive free training by St John Ambulance in CPR and to use a defibrillator correctly.”
St John Ambulance CEO Gordon Botwright said every second counts in sudden cardiac arrest emergencies.
“The survival rate from a sudden cardiac arrest is very low, at below five per cent, and decreases with every passing minute.”
“However, if a bystander performs effective CPR the survival rate more than doubles … If a patient is shocked by a Publicly Accessible Defibrillator, their chances of surviva can increase as high as 70 per cent – as seen in some parts of the world,” he said.
Other parts of the program includes:
- St John Ambulance Victoria will provide free training in CPR and defibrillator use to residents, students, workers, or visitors in the postcode
- Signage will be placed throughout the community about the location of the defibrillators.
Visit defibinyourstreet.org.au to learn more about features of the program like free education and training in CPR for residents living in the 3021 postcode.
*Image: Brimbank Deputy Mayor Cr Ranka Rasic attends the recent Defib in Your Street launch
