Mr. Tim Collins:

I am happy to respond. The most important thing on coming upon a person who is having cardiac arrest, 70% of which happen in the home, is to immediately call 999 to quickly make contact with the NAS, which can give directions to a nearby defibrillator and all the information about the defibrillator. However, the ambulance service needs a proper national register and to know that the defibrillators on the register are being properly maintained so that it can give things like access codes and so on.

In advance of such a register being put in place, it is important to note that defibrillators are important, but only approximately 20% of people who suffer a cardiac arrest have a shockable rhythm. The most important thing is to have more people in the community who understand how to do high-quality CPR. The main focus for the Irish Heart Foundation in recent years has been to train people in how to do CPR. There is a really high rate, at approximately 85%, of what we call bystander CPR, that is, people who will have a go. Irish people are very good in that regard but many people do not know how to do CPR properly. More resources need to be put into awareness and training of people in CPR at a national level, to begin with schools, as was mentioned, but to also include training the adult population. While they are being trained, they can be told how to use an AED or a defibrillator.