SEAN CHASE

sean.chase@sunmedia.ca

As they are proven to save people who suffer sudden cardiac arrest, Renfrew County will be seeking more Automatic External Defibrillators (AED).

The County of Renfrew Paramedic Service is participating in round five of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario Defibrillator Access Initiative in a bid to secure some of the 2,500 AEDs that are distributed throughout the province.

"Heart and Stroke has announced that 2,500 defibrillators will be distributed in this round and it's my hope to get as many of those as I can for our community, along with the training," Michael Nolan, Renfrew County director of emergency services, told the county's health committee recently.

Since the Heart & Stroke Restart a Heart, a Life Program and the Chase McEachern Tribute Fund was established, 2,800 AEDs have been supplied with 25,000 people receiving training. The county currently has 75 AEDs deployed amongst its 17 municipalities.

Mr. Nolan said he received 200 applications from communities and prioritized the list, which was then sent to the foundation.

AED is a portable electronic device that automatically diagnoses the potentially life threatening cardiac arrhythmias of ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia in a victim. It can treat them through defibrillation, the application of electrical therapy which stops the arrhythmia, allowing the heart to re-establish an effective rhythm.

Sean Chase is a Daily Observer multimedia journalist