Thursday 13th June 2013 – 9.30am – Claire Brown.
Cricketers in Wombourne are now equipped to help people in cardiac arrest thanks to the installation of a lifesaving box.
Tucked away in the South Staffordshire countryside is Beacon Cricket Club on Trysull Road in Wombourne. With more than 100 members, young and old, and a busy calendar of coaching sessions, matches and county cricket games drawing in hundreds of spectators, the club is an ideal location for a defibrillator.
Last Tuesday (4th June) saw the club take delivery of an automated external defibrillator from the Trust; a device used to restart someone’s heart when they’re suffering a cardiac arrest.
Sarah Hodgetts is a Senior Night Sister at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham. When she’s not at work, Sarah is a volunteer life saver with South Staffordshire First Responders and is also an advanced life support instructor. Sarah recently trained ten members of the cricket club in basic life support and the use of the defibrillator. She said: “The cricket club is off the beaten track, down a narrow country lane and because it’s in quite an isolated place it’s easy to miss it when you walk or drive past.
“By having a defibrillator on an active and well used site such as this with people trained in basic life support means that if a cricketer, spectator or a member of the public nearby were to suffer a cardiac arrest, emergency treatment could start straight away whilst an ambulance or a community first responder like me was en route.”
Roger Siers, Chairman at Beacon Cricket Club, said: “Through our relationship with the local CFR group, we’re very pleased to have secured the custody of the defibrillator. Through this and the appropriate training we have received it is a comfort to know that in the event of us having a serious life threatening emergency then we have the training and equipment to deal with it, until the emergency services arrive, and hopefully save someone’s life.
“Previously in my 30 odd years with Beacon Cricket Club and amateur sport in the area, I can recall two serious incidents that thankfully were resolved by the professional’s, but could have been worse. Cardiac arrest can happen to anyone of any age and any level of fitness, we derive comfort to know that as a local amateur sports club, we are better prepared to deal with a cardiac arrest should it occur.”
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Notes to Editor
Pictured (left to right) – Cricketers Oliver Green, Harry Hodgetts and Jake Cartwright, 1st Team Captain Roger Fildes and SSFR Sarah Hodgetts.