FIRST aid experts are calling for more workplaces to have defibrillators on site with recent statistics labeling the Riverina as the 'heart attack capital' of NSW.
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The initiative would "save lives", according to St John Ambulance who backed the concept, with Wagga branch's Nick Castles saying the figures spoke for themselves.
"A defibrillator brings the survival rate of cardiac arrests up from just 5 per cent to as much as 70 per cent if used within the first two to three minutes," he said.
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While the average response time for paramedics to reach life threatening cases in Wagga sits below the 10 minute benchmark at 7.8 minutes, those first few minutes after a cardiac arrest are vital.
Mr Castles said the current number of defibrillators on site at Wagga businesses cost people that valuable time.
"At the moment, 61 per cent of workplaces do not have a defibrillator, and we would ideally like to see that drop to zero," he said.
"As it is too, most of those places that do have one are health facilities or sporting clubs and such where you expect it to be anyway."
The most common concern raised around having the machine onsite related to the risks of misuse, according to Mr Castles.
But, he said people need not be worried.
"A defibrillator actually has a safety mechanism in place that won't send a shock if it recognises an ordinary heart beat," Mr Castles said.
"So if someone is inappropriately trying to use it or feels like they will do the wrong thing, that physically can't happen.
"It is also very user friendly, and literally reads out instructions, step by step, on how to use it as it's being done."
Figures from the Heart Foundation in December 2020 revealed that people living in the Riverina region, which includes Wagga, Griffith, Gundagai and Deniliquin, are admitted to hospital for heart attacks at a rate of 21.5 per cent per 10,000 people.
Well above the state average of 14.5, St John Ambulance CEO Sarah Lance said defibrillators should become a standard addition to all workplace first aid kits.
"We know that quick bystander intervention can improve cardiac arrest survival rates," she said.
"Defibrillators should be considered a necessity in any workplace so that in the event of an emergency, staff can act quickly and with confidence."
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