Over the last decade or so, ambulance services across the country have been introducing Community First Responder schemes into their areas. As well as providing prompt care to all categories of patients in their local areas, these volunteers are also trained and equipped to deal with the most deadly of calls – Cardiac Arrest. This is where the electricity in the heart stops working properly and is responsible for one-hundred-thousand deaths per year in the UK alone. Statistically, for each minute that the use of an Automated External Defibrillator is delayed in a patient suffering from Cardiac Arrest their chances of survival are reduced by up to 10%.

Community First Responder schemes are implemented to be able to provide immediate emergency care. The volunteers usually respond from their own homes into their local areas at the same time as a paramedic is dispatched. They often arrive on scene before the paramedic as they often know the areas better. The first few minutes at any emergency are crucial in giving the patients the best chance of survival and recovery.