Gosforth Civic Theatre are delighted to announce the installation of a new defibrillator on the exterior of the building, giving access to the life-saving device to the entire community.
As an important public space which is used by a cross section of the community for small and large scale events, it is vital that we keep everyone who visits us as safe as possible. With only one defibrillator in the local area we felt having one accessible to our staff but also to Gosforth residents and commuters in the Regent Centre area was vital.
High profile incidents over the last few years have shown how important quick intervention of cardiac arrest is, a cardiac arrest can happen to anyone. Every year approximately 55 out of every 100,000 people experience an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, with most occurring in the home or workplace. In 7 out of 10 cases, CPR is attempted by a bystander. In less than 1 out of 10 cases, a public access defibrillator (AED) is reported as being used.
A bystander performing CPR and using an automated external defibrillator (AED) can increase the chances of survival by two to four-fold.
Located on the external wall at the front of the building accessible via our Garden, facing Regent Farm Road, the defibrillator was funded and supplied by Training at Work Group, the first such instance that they have funded such a project.
Rachel Surtees, HR, Finance & Communications Director, Training at Work Group said:
"It is with huge pride that we are able to donate an external defibrillator to Gosforth Civic Theatre.
We have chosen you as our very first beneficiary as we feel that your mission statement and community programmes are exceptional. We were especially moved to hear about your virtual sponsored walk to Lapland and understand how vital ongoing fundraising is for the survival of local charities.
As a leading First Aid and Health and Safety Training Company, we believe that there is a synergy with the work we do and the offerings that GCT provides. You train others to expel old misconceptions about people with learning disabilities and we train people to save lives.
We understand that having a defibrillator on site will give your staff and members the reassurance to be able to act quickly should a situation arise. We also value your commitment to making the defib accessible to the wider community."
