AN OFF-DUTY policeman and a soldier on leave saved the life of 17-year-old Hollie Tillbrook, of Leigh, by performing CPR until an ambulance after she suffered a heart attack at Basildon’s Festival Leisure Park, prompting the question whether more people should learn the technique.

 

EMMA DURRANT IS A REGISTERED CHILDMINDER FROM BENFLEET. SHE SAID: Yes. Obviously I have to renew my CPR training every three years because of Ofsted’s rules, but it would be a massive benefit for children and juniors. I don’t think we should do it any younger, as the children won’t absorb it. I think it should be in the curriculum. You really don’t know when you are going to encounter someone who goes into a cardiac arrest, it shouldn’t just be medical professionals who have that expertise. It will save lives.

 

DIL PATEL IS A PARAMEDIC AT SOUTHEND AMBULANCE STATION. HE SAID: I absolutely agree and so do my colleagues. It should be taught routinely in schools. A few of us volunteer with groups and smaller schools to get the training into the wider community. It should be a public skill. The natural thing is to teach it in schools. Anecdotal evidence shows that when someone suffers a cardiac arrest, the only chance of a positive outcome is if someone on the scene performs CPR. It’s an absolute miracle if we get there within five minutes.

 

DESI MCKEOWN IS ACTING PRINCIPAL OF THE DEANES SCHOOL. HE SAID: One of the jobs of a school is to prepare our young people for the future. Having a basic knowledge of CPR could come in useful one day so any preparation a school does should be welcomed. At Deanes, we deliver a module to our health and social care students in which they study basic CPR. In fact, one of our health and social care teachers, while on her way to work, unfortunately had to try to resuscitateaman a few weeks ago. All our current Year 11s follow a course called preparation for working life for the module concerning health and safety at work, the students are taught first aid skills and basic CPR using resuscitation dolls.

 

JERRY GLAZIER IS THE GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE NATIONAL UNION OF TEACHERS IN ESSEX. HE SAID: I would have a slight trepidation about putting expectation on schoolchildren because this is something that has to be done effectively. Clearly schools are cautious about safeguarding children and have proper procedures in place to deal with medical emergencies. I don’t think schools would want to do it, because if it was done wrong it would be worse than not doing it at all. But I can’t see any problem with making students aware they could access opportunities to develop the skills to administer techniques.

 

MICK ALLWOOD IS A CANVEY FIRST RESPONDER AND COASTGUARD. HE SAID: I cannot emphasise how important it is to learn CPR. It doesn’t matter who the individual is, it’s not about them, but what they can do for their community. Knowledge of CPR is absolutely vital, the first responders will soon be going into schools to teach children how to do CPR in partnership with the East of England Ambulance Service. We are going to be trained how to teach and then go into schools and speak. It’s so important and I am most definitely in favour of CPR being taught in schools.

 

BEN STOREY IS A WINDSURFING INSTRUCTOR AND A HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER. HE SAID: You can’t predict the future and you would like to think if you saw someone in trouble you would be able to help, but if you don’t knowCPR then you won’t be able to help. It’s so important to learn CPR because if something happens you will be able to help someone in need. If the situation had been the other way around it would have been lifechanging for the girl to know what to do in that emergency situation.

 

GEORGE SUTTON, 15, IS A PUPIL AT CANVEY’S CASTLE VIEW SCHOOL AND WANTS BE BE A PARAMEDIC. HE SAID: I think it’s really important for people to do. If they see someone in the street in trouble and they’ve done a course they will know what to do. It’s important for education as so many people don’t knowwhat to do. At school now there is so much support and if someone has an asthma attack then people know what to do to help.

 

KEEGAN EGGENTON, 20, FROM WESTCLIFF SURVIVED A CARDIAC ARREST AFTER HIS MUM PERFORMED CPR ON HIM. HE SAID: I would be 100 per cent for it to be honest. I learnt it at school, but that’s only because I did Btec sports. Not everyone gets to do it and it’s something I would push for. It’s easy enough to say you can do it, but a lot of people train and still can’t do it. Starting earlier give people a better chance of doing it well if they get into trouble. My mum used what she saw on a television programme. I’ve seen my paramedics on several occasions and they say it’s easy to go wrong.