Here at Haddington Care Home our residents have been hard at work fundraising throughout 2020, with the goal of raising £1500 to purchase of Community Defibrillator. Thanks to the generosity of friends, families and our local community, we were thrilled to have smashed this target within only 13 days and the sponsors kept coming !
Our initial goal was to take part in a #ShockWalk where residents would complete 500 laps around the garden. However we very quickly smashed this target, and increased this to 750… ultimately we completed 1515 laps in total! Kicking off at the beginning of October with a Halloween theme, residents wore spooky outfits and had Halloween props for some added fun during the walk. The celebrations when we hit each milestone target were just fantastic!
Our Manager Julie McNaughton said:
“We know that Defibrillators are costly but potentially lifesaving equipment, so having one be accessible not only to our residents and staff but also to the wider community should it be needed is a real asset. Haddington Care Home is a perfect location to store and access the defibrillator as we have staff on duty 24 hours, 7 days a week.
“A justgiving page was set up so that friends and families could sponsor our residents who have been truly amazing over this time. Sadly we couldn’t host a huge event like we have in past years, so we had to be creative! Our #ShockWalk was not only a great success for fundraising, but the feeling of community spirit and real achievement when we hit our goals for both laps of the garden and seeing the donations come in was wonderful for everyone involved.”
“Following the success of their campaign, and having caught the fundraising bug, our residents continued to raise money, split between our HCH Welfare Fund for activities and local good cause, East Lothian Food Bank. We were delighted to hand over a cheque for £410.73.
Automated External Defibrillators (AED’s) are portable devices that can be used on someone having a cardiac arrest. They check the heart rhythm and send an electric shock to the heart to try and restore a normal rhythm. They have been in wide use for many years and form part of the standard equipment that paramedics, ambulances and first responders carry.
In the event of someone suffering a cardiac arrest, the time it takes to administer aid is critical. Having access to a nearby defibrillator can greatly reduce the amount of time it takes to administer lifesaving support. They give the best possible chance for someone to survive until medical services arrive.
