North East Ambulance Service issues defibrillator report

Police and ambulance confirmed that emergency services were contacted on Friday, August 16, after a man collapsed. Emergency services were sent to a defibrillator in the village, but the machine was faulty and the man was pronounced dead at the scene.

Initially, rescue workers said that first responders were directed to a defibrillator, but it turned out to be defective.

READ MORE: Questions about defibrillator maintenance after man's death

However, at Northumberland County Council's Health and Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee meeting on Tuesday (3 September), Paul Brolly, a resuscitation officer at NEAS, said rescuers had been allocated a different machine.

In an emergency, a rescuer dials 999 and is directed to the nearest defibrillator that is proven to be “rescue ready” – that is, it has been checked and found safe and ready for use.

Addressing councillors, Mr Brolly said: “I know many of you are thinking about the incident in Allendale. The call handler used a different defibrillator, not this one – which was not operational.

“That will come out in another report.”

READ MORE: Questions about defibrillator maintenance after man's death

According to the British Heart Foundation, defibrillators should have a designated “defibrillator monitor” who regularly checks the device to ensure it is ready for use in an emergency.

Defibrillators are allocated through a system called “Circuit,” which can help emergency services direct passersby to the nearest defibrillator.

Committee chairman, Councillor Barry Flux, said it was vital that a suitable system was in place to ensure carers were properly monitoring defibrillators.

He said: “The monitoring of registered guardians is key here. We all have community groups in our areas, sometimes they keep the same committee for generations and sometimes they change quite regularly and people forget what they are doing.

“Guardians can change and I think the key is to keep the register up to date and maybe do a surprise visit and make sure there is someone who is a guardian. It's about making sure the regulations are followed and people know what they are doing.”

The comments came during a discussion of a report by a task-and-finish group looking at defibrillators in the country's community.

The report recommended that the Council work with NEAS to support the registration of defibrillators with The Circuit, increase public awareness through training and advocate for consistent placement of defibrillators.