The CEO of SignalADoc, Mr. Osagie Omokaro has recommended that there should be provision of defibrillators in public places like Stadia, Airports, Banks, Secondary Schools, universities, and gyms nationwide in order to manage the rising cases of cardiac arrest in the country.
Defibrillators such as automated external defibrillators (AEDs) are portable, life-saving devices designed to treat people experiencing sudden cardiac arrest, a medical condition in which the heart stops beating suddenly and unexpectedly.
AEDs are a type of computerized defibrillator that automatically analyzes the heart rhythm in people who are experiencing cardiac arrest. When appropriate, it delivers an electrical shock to the heart to restore its normal rhythm. The AED system includes accessories, such as a battery and pad electrodes, that are necessary for the AED to detect and interpret a person’s heart rhythm and deliver an electrical shock if one is needed.
The combination of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and early defibrillation is very effective in saving lives when used in the first few minutes following a collapse from sudden cardiac arrest.
Some AEDs have simple instructions for use and can be used by persons with little or minimal training so it is advisable that everyone working in various institutions mentioned above must know how to use them in case of emergencies which may arise.
“In the last couple of years, there is hardly any month that we don’t read or learn about someone who collapsed in a sports event, bank, stadium, public building or gym and later died because of non-availability of defibrillators” Mr. Omokaro said.
He promised that with other stakeholders in the public health space, they will present a bill to the National Assembly to make it compulsory/mandatory for defibrillators to be widely available in various public places all over the country in order to save lives of Nigerians who may need it.
