Mark Wall (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. We all looked in shock last Saturday week at the distressing scenes at the soccer match between Finland and Denmark when a young and fit international footballer dropped to the ground, suffering a cardiac arrest. The medical team on-site jumped into action and with the aid of an automated external defibrillator, AED, the player was stabilised and a life was saved.

Unfortunately, this is not the first time we have seen or heard of this happening on our playing pitches, whether it is in an international soccer stadium or local sports club grounds, or even in the many great communities we have on this island. The key to the survival of Mr. Christian Eriksen and so many before him was the availability of an AED and, just as important, the training of people in knowing how to use it. The Irish Red Cross estimates there are between 8,000 and 10,000 publicly accessible defibrillators in Ireland but the emergency services may only know approximately 25% of these locations. The key word is "estimates" and hence my reason for raising this on the Commencement today.

What we need in the country is a national central register of all available defibrillators and, like in other countries, an app to help in the speed and convenience in finding them. We must include and expand the terrific Community First Responders we have in this country. They are embedded in their communities and committed to saving lives. In my home town of Athy they respond to approximately one cardiac event each month and in our bigger towns, that number could be doubled or even trebled. These volunteers still have to fundraise by holding annual table quizzes, for example, to ensure there is continuous training for members. We need to fund this community organisation so it can provide training within their communities and so these community-based groups can ensure AEDs in their areas are working and particularly that batteries and pads are in working order.

As a public representative in south Kildare I hold fundraisers and been delighted to launch AEDs in every community there. However, it is vital that all these AEDs be registered and checked regularly to ensure they are in working order. There are examples of community groups using an app to register AEDs and this could be used on a national basis. One of those is the Enniscorthy defibrillator initiative, called PulsePoint, and it seeks to register all defibrillators in the town. Another is the work of Dr. Peter Naughton in County Laois mapping the location of all AEDs in the county so the emergency services could advise frantic callers in their hour of need of the nearest device. My colleague, Councillor Paul O'Brien in Wicklow, has proposed that a provision for AEDs should be included in all new major housing builds, which is an excellent idea and another way of providing safer communities in all our counties.

I have been made aware that in 2019, according to the out-of-hospital cardiac arrest register, there were 2,564 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, or 54 per 100,000 of our population. The report also indicates that defibrillation was attempted in 25% of these cases before the arrival of the emergency services.

Of course, there is the great work done by the National Ambulance Service and its staff, who take those emergency calls in the first place, assisting even those not trained in the use of an AED. Where one is available, a call to the emergency services should always be made. We need investment in a national register and app by the HSE. We need investment in our Community First Responders to assist in their training and the training and assisting of people in clubs, shops and schools that hold an AED in the community. Such a register would save lives and ensure that a life-saving machine is working when it is needed most. It will continue to build support for a community-based initiative that is already making a difference and saving lives in the State.