Asda to install defibrillators across its store estate
Asda has announced that it is to roll out defibrillators to all of its stores by the end of 2014.
The supermarket is partnering with British Heart Foundation to install public-access defibrillators across 609 stores. The initiative will also include having CPR trained staff in every store.
Asda’s head of community Dawn Clements said: “We’re really proud of our investment of over £500,000 in providing life-saving defibrillators for all of the communities we operate in. It can take a number of minutes for an ambulance to reach one of our stores in response to an emergency like a cardiac arrest. The commitment we’re making today could significantly cut the amount of time a cardiac arrest sufferer has to wait for life-saving CPR and defibrillation, giving them the best possible chance of survival.”
Starting in London, Asda will roll out the defibrillators in its stores, warehouses and offices by the end of 2014. In addition, BHF will work with local ambulance trusts to run familiarisation training for 12,000 Asda staff on how to use the defibrillators as part of the full chain of survival.
BHF’s chief executive Simon Gillespie said: “Cardiac arrest survival rates in the UK are astonishingly low. But Asda’s bold commitment to become the first large retailer to have CPR trained staff and public access defibrillators in every store will be instrumental in helping communities up and down the country access the life-saving support they need in an emergency. This really could mean the difference between life and death for someone having a cardiac arrest while doing something as ordinary as shopping.”
