St John Ambulance Cymru is celebrating the success of its 2024 Defibruary campaign, with almost 5,000 more people in Wales now equipped with lifesaving CPR and defibrillator skills.

The campaign, which runs through February each year, aims to promote defibrillator and CPR knowledge, with the hope that more people in the community would feel comfortable to act should someone near them suffer a cardiac arrest.

Over the course of the campaign, the charity’s volunteers ran sessions at their Divisional buildings across the country and public demonstrations.

At these events, members of the public were keen to find out more about how they can protect their loved ones in an emergency, and the St John Ambulance Cymru team were happy to share advice and demonstrate invaluable first aid techniques.

This year’s campaign was also featured on ITV Cymru Wales News, Radio Cymru’s ‘Bore Cothi’ as well as ‘Newyddion Ni’ and ‘Prynhawn Da’ on S4C. St John Ambulance Cymru Volunteers also held a live video Q&A session on Facebook, answering questions from members of the public, busting myths about defibrillators and providing demonstrations on how to use them.

In Wales, the survival rate following an out of hospital cardiac arrest is less than 5%. St John Ambulance Cymru are determined to change that and make sure there are more lifesavers on the streets of Wales with campaigns like Defibruary.

“You don’t need professional training to use a defibrillator” said Darren Murray, Head of Community Operations at St John Ambulance Cymru, “But we want more people to feel confident in using one.”

“We hope that our free CPR and defibrillator awareness sessions will give people the confidence to act quickly in a cardiac emergency. In these situations, every second counts, so it’s vital that people are familiar with these potentially lifesaving skills.”

“It’s great to see the general public so engaged with the campaign this year. We’d like to thank everyone who has supported the campaign and are delighted that the people of Wales are keen to learn more about how they can keep their loved ones safe.”

During the campaign, the charity has also been fundraising for new public access defibrillators and other vital pieces of first aid equipment for communities across Wales.

This work will be continuing throughout the year, to further protect communities and keep people safe.

St John Ambulance Cymru offer free first aid demonstrations to schools and community groups all year round.

If you’d like to book one of these sessions for your school or club please email [email protected], call 0345 678 5646 or visit https://www.sjacymru.org.uk to find out more.