In support of this year’s global ‘Restart a Heart Day’ campaign taking place on Wednesday 16th October, Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council is whole-heartedly backing this designated day of action aimed at teaching vital life-saving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills to as many people as possible.
Having supported the campaign in previous years, the council will once again be delivering free CPR training sessions at various venues across the borough.
Lord Mayor Mealla Campbell is calling on local communities to get involved.
“The aim of ‘Restart a Heart Day’ is to bring awareness, education and training to the general public in order to increase the likelihood of lives being saved in the event of an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest,” she said.
“Around 1,500 people in Northern Ireland suffer an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest each year, with the chances of survival as low as one in ten.
“The early moments of a cardiac arrest are critical, and a trained person on the scene can make the difference between life and death.
“Being able to administer CPR can increase the chances of survival by two to three times. However, more of us need to learn these vital life-saving skills as statistics show that bystander CPR is delivered in only one in five cases.
“Please give up one hour of your life in order to learn the skills needed to help save someone else’s life.”
CPR training sessions will be delivered at these venues on these dates.
Portadown Town Hall (Minor Hall) Monday 14th October, 7.00pm-8.00pm
Orchard Leisure Centre, Armagh, Tuesday 15th October, 9.30am-10.30am
Banbridge Civic Building (Chamber), Tuesday 15th October, 10.00am-11.00am
Orchard Leisure Centre, Armagh, Tuesday 15th October, 11.00am-12 noon
TMAC Centre, Keady, Wednesday 16th October, 6.30pm-7.30pm
Lurgan Town Hall (Basement Room), Wednesday 16th October, 7.00pm-8.00pm
Brownlow Community Hub (Studio), Friday 18th October, 6.00pm-7.00pm
Participants are advised to wear trousers and comfortable footwear as there is a practical element to the training.
To register for a CPR training session, call Sharon Donaghy on 028 3831 2518 or email sharon.donaghy@armaghbanbridgecraigavon.gov.uk
To find out more about ‘Restart a Heart Day’ and to access online resources, visit www.resus.org.uk and www.bhf.org.uk
