Warwick Rotary Club continues to support life-saving charity

Recently the Rotary Club had Nick Shacklock from Warwickshire Heart, formerly the Warwick Community First Responders (CFR’s), talk to them about their progress this year.

Nick told the club that during 2017 Warwick Rotary, Warwick Community First Responders and Warwick-based charity Evelyn’s Gift, collaborated on a range of projects, and taught vital life-saving skills to over 4,000 residents.

The First Responders are volunteers trained and mobilised by West Midlands Ambulance Service who attend 999 calls and aim to keep patients alive and as comfortable as possible until a Service ambulance arrives.

Nick reported that in the last 12 months they had attended over 300 999 calls.

During the year the Warwick CFR’s re-branded themselves as a new charity “Warwickshire Hearts”, incorporating CFRs from a similar scheme in Stratford and taking on a formal objective to train as many as possible in South Warwickshire in CPR and the use of a Defibrillator (AED).

Operational responders have increased from eight to 13, four additional trainees are also nearly qualified, and more recruits are awaiting training.

In 2017 they acquired a car to help them attend incidents (mainly in the urban areas) quickly, but the additional recruits in rural villages need equipping as well.

In addition to their primary role, Warwickshire Hearts has worked closely with charity Evelyns Gift, training people in local schools and community organisations in CPR lifesaving skills and using defibrillators.

On Restart a Heart day in October, over 1,200 people were trained.

Rotarian Graham Suggett and two local doctors have joined as trainers to help meet the demand.

Working together with Warwickshire Hearts and Evelyn’s Gift, the Rotary Club has applied for District Grants to provide face shields to CPR trainees, facilitated the provision of additional community defibrillators, helped install a defibrillator at Round Oak school, and the CFR’s supported Rotary’s annual Stroke Awareness event.

Warwick Rotary Club’s President John Hibben presented Nick with a cheque to help the charity continue their work.

If anyone is interested in being trained in CPR and how to use a defibrillator, joining the training team, or are interested in becoming a 999 Responder they should contact Warwickshire Hearts via the ‘Contact Us’ tab on their website.

To go to the website click here.

Donations are also needed to support the charity’s work both in responding to 999 calls (which receives no public funding) and in delivering CPR training. The CPR courses are provided free of charge.