Training
Cardiology experts have donated a public access defibrillator to the University of Abuja and intensified calls for nationwide Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) training to reduce sudden cardiac deaths in Nigeria.
They made the donation during the World Restart a Heart Day celebration organised by the University of Abuja Medical Centre and the Society for Public Health and Social Development (SPHSD) on Saturday in Abuja.
The immediate past President of the Nigerian Cardiac Society (NCS), Prof. Augustine Odili, said increasing reports of people collapsing and dying suddenly prompted the society’s intervention.
“The reports of incessant people dropping dead on the streets and everywhere was a major concern to us.
“So we developed the “Bring Back to Life” programme to train people everywhere in this country that every individual should be able to know how to resuscitate somebody who has collapsed,” he said.
He said the society developed a curriculum and accredited hospitals, centres and non-governmental organisations to sustain nationwide basic life support training.
According to him, SPHSD is among the accredited centres providing the life-saving training.
Odili said CPR training alone was insufficient without teaching people how to use public access defibrillators during cardiac emergencies.
“Anywhere you have a lot of people gather, you have these instruments that can be used to resuscitate somebody even before health workers arrive,” he said.
He handed over a donated public access defibrillator to the university, noting that SPHSD would coordinate training on its use.
Executive Director of SPHSD, Dr Doris Maduka, emphasised the importance of basic life-saving support skill in reducing incidences of deaths emanating from heart related problems.
She said the organisation returned to fulfil its promise of training members of the university community on emergency response techniques.
“We want our children, our mothers, our fathers to know the importance of being able to save a life,” Maduka said.
She stressed that prompt CPR could keep a victim alive before professional medical assistance arrives.
“If you do not press that heart, if you do not do that CPR, you declare the person dead even before the person dies,” she said.
Maduka said the organisation would extend the campaign to churches, mosques and other institutions across the country.
Mr Chukwuemeka Eze, representative of Quest Villa Solutions Limited and donor of the defibrillator, said the gesture reflected the organisation’s commitment to supporting medical research and reducing deaths linked to heart-related conditions.
Eze said the company remained open to partnerships with the university and other institutions in areas such as medical research and data generation to strengthen health systems and improve healthcare outcomes in Nigeria.
Prof. Hakeem Fawehinmi, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja, described the initiative as a major contribution to reducing deaths from sudden cardiac emergencies.
“Sudden cardiac emergencies has contributed significantly to the statistics of world morbidity today.
“What you are doing is a very huge support for humanity. You are training people, going as crusaders to train people that could save lives that otherwise would not have been saved,” he said.
Fawehinmi appreciated the organisations for supporting efforts to reduce deaths from sudden cardiac emergencies through CPR training and the donation of a public access defibrillator. (NAN)
