AED Program
Lady Minto Hospital Foundation spearheads the AED campaign to make Salt Spring Island a heart healthy community
The Lady Minto Hospital Foundation in partnership with Salt Spring Fire/Rescue spearheaded the AED Campaign in January 2012 and to date, there are some 42 AEDs installed on Salt Spring Island.
If you wish to learn more about AEDs or want to be trained in CPR & AED use, here are the programs available on Salt Spring Island.
CRD Salt Spring Island visit www.ssiparc.ca
Salt Spring Adventure Company visit www.saltspringadventures.com
The late Beth Weston was deeply involved in the AED program at Lady Minto Hospital and was for years the certified Red Cross Trainer. Beth felt passionately about the effectiveness of AEDs and before her passing she spoke with Foundation Chair Derek Fry, about the need for AEDs in our community:
“Ordinary lay people need to know how to use an AED and my quest for training led me to the Lady Minto Hospital Foundation. As I spoke to Foundation President Derek Fry, I sensed his frustration with the issues around training. The Foundation was eager to follow Dr. Barclay’s suggestions and get AEDs into the community but simply hanging them on walls around Salt Spring Island without teaching people how to use them was not going to be effective. People were afraid of this new addition to CPR. They were curious but at arm’s length. I wanted to dispel the myths I had heard about AED units. I wanted as many people as possible to know how to use an AED and I wanted people to know how effective an AED can be and how it can truly save lives.”
“Over the years in my career as a nurse, I had taught CPR (Cardiac Pulmonary Resuscitation) to various groups and individuals. But I knew that even if someone did CPR perfectly, many victims of sudden cardiac arrest did not survive. It was always very sad to talk to the lay responder whose victim had died. It was an event that the responder would never forget. Now we have the AED which is dramatically increasing the success of CPR.”
“At Chicago’s O’Hara Airport, the authorities were concerned about the high incidence of sudden cardiac arrest and resulting deaths. Only 3 to 5% of those who received timely CPR recovered. Then they put an AED within reach every 45 seconds throughout the airport. This means that one cannot walk for more than 45 seconds without passing an AED. They ran training programs for all levels of staff. Now more than 60% suffering a sudden cardiac arrest recover. Some of the events have been carried out by those without AED training proving jut how easy it is to use an AED.”
“How can the residents of Salt Spring Island reduce the deaths from sudden cardiac arrest? I believe there is a role for everyone in the community to help. People need to learn what an AED unit looks like and how it is used. They need to know where the AESs are located. People need to take action to get more AEDs into the community. And finally, people need to get the training to feel comfortable using the AED should the need arise.”
What is an Automated External Defibrillator (AED)?
An AED is designed to deliver an electric charge to a subject after the onset of a sudden cardiac arrest. There is step by step automated voice instructions built into the unit and almost anyone can use an AED.
AED Locations on Salt Spring Island
AED LOCATIONS | ADDRESS | PHONE |
Rainbow Road Indoor Pool | 262 Rainbow RD | 250-538-4310 |
SSI Golf Club | 805 Lower Ganges RD | 250-537-2121 |
Royal Vancouver Yacht Club | 241 Scott Point RD | 250-537-5033 |
Portlock Park CRD Office | 145 Vesuvius Bay RD | 250-537-4448 |
SSI Health Centre | 164 Kings Lane | 250-537-1828 |
All Saints by the Sea | 110 Park DR | 250-537-2171 |
Farmers Institute | 351 Rainbow RD | 250-537-4755 |
Pharmasave Downtown | 104 Lower Ganges RD | 250-537-5534 |
Country Grocer | 374 Lower Ganges RD | 250-537-4144 |
North End Fitness | 102 McPhillips Ave | 250-537-5217 |
ArtSpring | 100 Jackson Ave | 250-537-2125 |
Salt Spring Air | 3102 Grace Point Squ | 250-537-9880 |
Salt Spring Air | 115 Fulford Ganges RD | 250-537-9880 |
Royal Canadian Legion x 2 | 120 Blain RD | 250-537-5822 |
Maracaibo Estates | 220 Maracaibo Lane | 250-537-2878 |
Hayden Dentistry | 199 Saltspring Way | 250-537-1400 |
Seniors Services Society | 379 Lower Ganges RD | 250-537-4604 |
Brinkworth Estates | 135 Brinkworthy RD | 250-537-4041 |
Salt Spring Dental | 2201 Grace Point Squ | 250-537-1616 |
SSI Sailing Club | 152 Douglas RD | 250-537-1533 |
Meadowbrook Seniors Residence | 121 Atkins RD | 250-538-1995 |
Gilf Island Secondary School | 232 Rainbow RD | 250-537-5723 |
Salt Spring Public Library | 129 McPhillips Ave | 250-537-4666 |
SSI Tennis Centre | 805 Lower Ganges RD | 250-537-2199 |
Country Grocer | 374 Lower Ganges RD | 250-537-4144 |
Fulford Hall | 2591 Fulford Ganges RD | 250-653-9579 |
Our Lady of Grace | 135 Drake RD | 250-931-0074 |
Beaver Point Hall | 1361 Beaver Point RD | 250-354-4255 |
Wellness Centre | 120 Hereford Ave | 250-900-1125 |
United Church | 111 Hereford Ave | 250-537-5812 |
Rock Salt | 2921 Fulford Ganges RD | 250-653-4210 |
Seaside Restaurant | 795 Vesuvius Bay RD | 250-538-0350 |
Fernwood Elementary | 150 Ferwood RD | 250-537-5723 |
SSI Middle School | 120 Rainbow RD | 250-537-5723 |
SS Elementary School | 122 Rainbow RD | 250-537-5723 |
Thrifty Foods | 114 Purvis Lane | 250-537-1522 |
Eagle Ridge Clinic | 258 Eagle Ridge DR | 250-537-1915 |
Jana’s Bake Shop | 315 Upper Ganges RD | 778-353-2253 |
Bulman RD | 237 Bulman RD | 250-930-4984 |
Greenwoods Eldercare | 133 Blain RD | 250-537-5561 |
Braehaven | 137 Blain RD | 250-537-5520 |
Mid Island Co-op | 135 Rainbow RD | 250-729-8400 |
How can I help?
Take the training and be ready in an emergency.
Familiarize yourself with all AED locations so that you can retrieve a unit quickly when needed.
Can using an AED really save a life?
You bet. Subjects have a 70% survival rate if treated with an AED within 4 minutes.
Can I harm someone by using an AED?
No, there are no reports of any harm or death caused from using an AED. The AED will only deliver an electric charge to someone in cardiac arrest