Life-saving kit is on Tesco’s shopping list
LIFE-SAVING equipment aimed at cutting cardiac deaths is be installed in supermarkets across Glasgow.
Tesco is to introduce defibrillators to 907 of its largest stores across the UK including nine shops in Glasgow.
Statistics from the British Heart Foundation show that more than 30,000 people suffer a cardiac arrest outside of hospital in the UK every year, but less than one in ten survive.
For every minute without CPR and defibrillation, a person’s chance of survival decreases by around 10 per cent. A total of 729 Tesco Extra and Superstores all over the country will be fitted with defibrillators as part of the initiative, and the retailer also plans to install the equipment in all of its 178 Metro stores over the coming weeks.
In Scotland, this means that 109 Tesco stores will provide the vital equipment in their community.
Shops i n Shettleston, Knightswood, St Rollox, Rutherglen, Silverburn, Maryhill, Burnside, Milngavie and Parkhead will get the equipment.
The life-saving scheme is part of a partnership between Tesco and the British Heart Foundation.
Tony Hoggett, Tesco UK Chief Operating Officer said: “We are always looking for ways to help the communities we serve, and we know that having a defibrillator to hand can mean saving the life of someone suffering a cardiac arrest.
“This initiative has the potential to make a real difference to customers and colleagues all over the country.”
Sara Askew, BHF Head of Survival, said: “If you have a cardiac arrest in the UK today you have just a one in ten chance of survival.
“More people could be saved if more people had the skills and confidence to perform CPR and more defibrillators were available and accessible in public places.
“We are delighted that Tesco is supporting BHF’s Nation of Lifesavers campaign by making public access defibrillators available in all its larger stores. Knowing vital CPR skills and having access to a defibrillator can often be the difference between life and death.”
In 2014 Asda became the UK’s first large retailer to commit to having CPR trained staff and a public access defibrillator in every store.
Asda’s Head of Community, Dawn Clements, said at the time: “We’re really proud of our i nvestment 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.”
Scotmid Co-operative has been working with the Scottish Ambulance Service since 2011 to install public access defibrillators in the communities in Scotland that need them most.
This includes remote communities where it may take longer for an ambulance to reach, places where there are high instances of cardiac arrest and areas of high footfall. In 2013, North Lanarkshire Council became the first local authority to instal defibrillators in its secondary schools.