Automated External Defibrillator - Do you carry one AND are you trained in it's use?

[bergersau]

The other night I attended a briefing session with my dive club on the use of the clubs A.E.D's and emergency O2 gear.
We spent 3 hours covering CPR, provision of O2 and the use of the defibrillators including practising with training units and resuscitation dummies. The session was conducted by an ambulance officer who is also a DAN trainer.

Time very well spent...

We all came away with a better understanding of the safety gear the club carries on its boats and how to best use it in an emergency.

These A.E.D units are automatic but still require a good understanding of their function and operation to use them effectively. I'd not want to have to use one without the knowledge we gained from that briefing.

I'd suggest that any club providing them on it's outings should organise a similar training session for it's members.

So the question is :

Automated External Defibrillator - Do you carry one AND are you trained in it's use?

 

[Griffo]

I thought part of the point of AED's was that they were idiot proof? Stick on the pads according to the diagram, press the button, and follow the instructions.

 

[AfterDark]

No I don't carry one. Yes I can use one. The one I was trained on a three old could operate, good thing too!

 

[redsky@night]

That's the whole point of AED's. I don't own one since it isn't cost effective but they are extremely common. The pads have pictures on them and all you do is press the green button to turn it on. Beyond that the machine will tell you what to do. Even a language barrier shouldn't be an issue because the shock button will light up when it is time to shock.

 

[aquaregia]

Our clubs got one and we're all trained.

 

[bergersau]

Could you use one based on the diagrams and audible instructions the unit issues when opened - probably.
Would you have the knowledge to get the best result - probably not.
We covered
Care and maintenance/inspection of the AED.
The operational difference between an Automatic defibrillator and a semi-automatic unit - the club has both kinds.
How to best position and apply the pads.
We also cleared up some common misconceptions about defibrillators that Hollywood is responsible for.

 

[Badge353]

I don't have one but have been trained in their use. To be honest they are so simple to operate my seven year old could follow the diagrams and not get it wrong. They are automatic and will not just shock someone because it is on them. It will analyze the person and tell you what to do.

 

[Hawkwood]

"Trained" in use? Yes. Carry one all the time? No.

We have one at the Shop (we have our own pool, so all our C&P training is done onsite). The boat that we use most often on the coast also has one.

Although they may be "idiot-proof" as some suggest, AED use is a typical part of a number of first aid courses these days. It is good to understand the basic how and what, but not essential.

 

[redsky@night]

Don't try to make an easy task hard people. They are designed for untrained users, that is why they are all over the place. They do not require training for optimum use.

 

[TMHeimer]

I have the training, and it did seem "idiot" proof at the time. Don't own one. I'm the mechanical genious who would have to search for the button to push. It wouldn't be a bad idea to use one every time you do a CPR review course. I'm also obviously trained to give O2. I got our owner to show me step by step how to use our shop ones and wrote the steps down, review them once a week. Otherwise I'd NEVER remember how to do it. Doing this once or twice in Rescue & DM courses would mean absolutely nothing to me. In fact, the other 3 DM candidates had just taken Rescue--none of us did the O2 set up perfectly the first try.