Workers at a Cwmbran business park now have access to a defibrillator after Green & Co Accountants and Tax Advisors and the Welsh Ambulance Service teamed up through the Save a Life Cymru Scheme.
The defibrillator will be the only one within walking distance of the numerous businesses with hundreds of staff off Llantarnam Park Way. The potentially life-saving piece of kit is available to the public and is located outside the firm’s headquarters at Pembroke House.
Director at Green & Co, Nick Park, said it was a colleague’s personal story that inspired them to look into having a defibrillator closer to work. He said: “The health and wellbeing of our staff is obviously of utmost importance to us, but it wasn’t until we were discussing one of our colleague’s personal experiences with a genetic heart condition that we realised there were no defibrillators within walking distance of our offices.
“Naturally, publicly available defibs are kept in community spaces – but with so many people working on the business park, we felt it was important to try and get one close by – every second counts.
“I am delighted that we now have a defibrillator at the entrance to our office. This is available to anyone in the area who needs it and hopefully will help to save lives. In my experience, just doing the defibrillator training course was incredibly useful and gave me much more confidence about how to help if someone does collapse. I would strongly recommend others getting the life-saving training that could make a profound difference.’
Carl Powell, from the Welsh Ambulance Service, said: “There are 6,000 cardiac arrests in Wales every year, and whilst most of these happen at home, a significant amount occur in public. Time is a critical factor during an arrest, and unfortunately, not all public access defibs are listed on thecircuit.uk register – particularly those in workspaces.
“I’m delighted that Green & Co have placed the defibrillator outside their office and made it available for public use – potentially saving lives.”
Visit heartsafe.org.uk to find your nearest defibrillator.
