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Help getting an AED

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Bay Island Diver

Contributor
Scuba Instructor
Messages
519
Reaction score
21
Location
Roatan
# of dives
5000 - ∞
This post is aimed at anyone who may have contacts in the medical industry.

With the massive increase of cruise ship visitors in the past few years we have seen a significant increase in the number of medical emergencies in our small town, which has no medical facilities. In the last month two visitors have had heart attacks in the vicinity of our office, one sadly was fatal.

As a result we are trying to find a way to get at least one AED located in our office. It is an average response time of 10-15 minutes for the islands ambulance to get here. Ideally we would like to try and get three in total 1 for the office and one each on our 2 patrol boats.

If you know of any organisation that can help us achieve this goal with our limited funds it would be much appreciated.
 
At a cost of $700 to $1500 a piece, it would be tough to find a donor. You might want to write to the companies directly and see if they have any refurb equipment they would donate. I imagine the least expensive ones are likely the ones you don't want to expose to salt water... But you can always put them in a water proof case and mount it high and dry. You would also need to budget for yearly battery replacement, and I believe most models require an AC outlet to plug them in when not used as a portable device.
 
Bay Island Diver:
If you know of any organisation that can help us achieve this goal with our limited funds it would be much appreciated.
This will not help you as you are not US based (I don't know about your collaborators, if any) but I thought it might be of interest to someone. I would contact DAN Training and ask them if they know of anything available that would help support your need (Their program is supported by donors, you never know...).

DAN Training & Education: AED Matching Grant Program
http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/training/instructors/aedgrant.asp

Also worth note:
DAN Training & Education: Oxygen Grant Program
http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/training/instructors/o2grant.asp
 
If you have enough divemasters who are RN's and Paramedics, there are plenty of surplus defibrillators outthere, but one has to be certified in ACLS and comfortable using them... These you definitely can afford or find a donor for... But all medical equipments need to be tested and checked before put into use.
 
I know this may be a long shot, but have you considered contacting the cruise lines and inquiring if they would be willing to help cover the cost? The older clientèle in Roatan are often there on a cruise ship, and having passengers drop dead during a quick stop in Roatan cannot be good for business...

The fact that the Roatan Marine Park is a NGO and non-profit should lend a great deal of credibility to any such request....

Another option is to take up collections. I know people can be stingy, but asking for an extra $5/diver isn't going to break the bank. 300 divers per AED....
 
undefined:
I know this may be a long shot, but have you considered contacting the cruise lines and inquiring if they would be willing to help cover the cost? The older clientèle in Roatan are often there on a cruise ship, and having passengers drop dead during a quick stop in Roatan cannot be good for business...

That's actually a great idea! The cruise lines operate on such a huge budget that a few thousand $ split among the lines that stop there would be absolutely insignificant for them.

If it only saves one passenger's life it would be worth the cost of a whole truckload of AEDs just in publicity.

You could get each line to buy you one AED and put their name on it: "Donated by xxxx"

Terry
 
Mrs. undefined has pledged our support at $100. We're willing to contact DAN and the International Red Cross to see if they can offer support and facilitate getting one to you. If need be it can be shipped to us and we'll transport it down when we come in May to avoid the complications and risks associated with posting a parcel of some value to Honduras.

Let us know if we can be of any other help. We both strongly support getting an AED in place in West End and the Marine Park office is the perfect location. The one thing I'd want to see is a published policy on the Marine Park website that states that they will dispatch the device to a diver or non-diver in trouble, along with an individual trained in its use, during specific hours and within West End. I'd also like to see service records posted to the website or sent out with the quarterly emails to show that battery changes and any required service is being performed on the unit. The last thing anyone wants is to have an AED that doesn't perform as designed...

Count us in for $100. Who's with us?
 
fisherdvm:
If you have enough divemasters who are RN's and Paramedics, there are plenty of surplus defibrillators outthere, but one has to be certified in ACLS and comfortable using them... These you definitely can afford or find a donor for... But all medical equipments need to be tested and checked before put into use.
Actually, for and AED, you do not have to have ACLS certification to operate it. Lay people can operate them with a much more simple certification, including CPR. You do not have to be a paramedic, RN, or even an EMT to be certified. You do, however, need to keep the certification current (annually I believe).
Not sure if or how this would apply abroad anyhow.....
 
fisherdvm:
If you have enough divemasters who are RN's and Paramedics, there are plenty of surplus defibrillators outthere, but one has to be certified in ACLS and comfortable using them... These you definitely can afford or find a donor for... But all medical equipments need to be tested and checked before put into use.

Contrary to popular belief, RNs and paramedics do not carry AEDs along with them routinely. I'm an RN and I don't own one!
 
Hemlon:
Contrary to popular belief, RNs and paramedics do not carry AEDs along with them routinely. I'm an RN and I don't own one!

agreed...I am a paramedic and do not use an AED. We use a heart monitor..Our EMT's use AED's , though...also, any comercial facility that has them ( such as airports or casinos) need only train their employees on using them (including cpr)...If you know cpr, they are very simple to use.
 

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