For every minute someone is in cardiac arrest without CPR and access to a defibrillator, their chances of survival drops by up to 10%. Having a public access defibrillator available in an emergency can be lifesaving, especially in a situation where ambulance response times may be longer.
First Dunmurry NSPCI committee agreed to initiate a fundraising drive to purchase a defibrillator to be situated in The McCleery Hall, lead by Emma McCrudden. It is hoped that it will never need to be used, however by having a defibrillator and volunteers trained in CPR we can play an important role for both children and adults, should it ever be required.
A series of fundraising initiatives were organised and supported by the congregation, neighbouring churches and the local community. This included information talks by NI Chest Heart & Stroke, Aware NI, Diabetes NI and Scam Aware and the finale was a family movie night showing ‘The Greatest Showman.’
In total, £1283 was raised to purchase a defibrillator and has since been installed on the external entrance of the McCleery Hall for access, should it ever be required, by our congregation, visitors or wider Dunmurry Community. A short dedication service for the defibrillator was held on Tuesday 12th November 2019 by Rev. Dr. David Steers followed by a training session on how to use the device lead by Cardiac Services. In total 25 people were trained on how to use the device, including congregation members and neighbouring churches.
Please note that for security reasons the defibrillator is kept in a locked cabinet and is registered with the NI Ambulance Service. The code to unlock the cabinet can be accessed by calling 999 and following the instructions on the cabinet.