Stuart’s Prevention Plan

A Lanzarote resident is appealing for donations and assistance to create a network of emergency defibrillator machines on the island.

On 28th March, Stuart Hodges suffered a cardiac arrest while carrying out deliveries in Puerto del Carmen. Passersby and local police did their best to administer CPR, but it took 45 minutes for an ambulance to arrive, by which time it was too late to save Stuart.

Stuart’s wife, Patricia, believes that if a defibrillator had been available, her husband’s chances of survival would have been far greater. Defibrillators can increase survival chances in cases of cardiac arrest by up to 70%, and, as Stuart suffered from arrhythmia, Patricia believes there was a possibility that a defib machine could have kicked his heart back into a rhythm.

“Nothing’s going to bring my husband back,” Patricia told us, “But we can do something to try and stop this happening again.”

That’s why Patricia, with the help of Sarah English, has launched an appeal to raise money to install defibrillators throughout the island. Initially focusing Puerto del Carmen, the aim is that no one will be more than 200 metres from a defibrillator in the case of an emergency.

There is no point in installing defib machines if no one knows how to use them, though. That’s why the money Patricia raises will also be used to train workers in the vicinity of the machines.

Patricia has already found a supplier of machines at €1,200 each, considerably more economical than the original quote of €1,750, and training is likely to cost €60 per person.

You don’t have to be trained to use a defibrillator, however. Spanish protocols provide that anyone can go ahead if a trained attendant isn’t available. The machines themselves provide simple, easy to follow instructions. If more people are aware of what a defibrillator looks like and how it is used, more tragedies can be avoided.

Aside from providing machines, Patricia is working on a register of all the defibrillators that are available on the island. The Ariadna app is a national Spanish resource that attempts to do this, indicating exactly where defibrillators are located. However, there are still many defibrillators that do not show up, often in private businesses.

Patricia advises anyone who knows of a defibrillator on Lanzarote to contact her, as well as check that it is registered on the Ariadna app. The ultimate aim is a resource that can rapidly locate defib machines and trained volunteers in the case of emergencies.

You can donate to the appeal at the Stuart’s Prevention Plan page at www.gofundme.com/f/stuarts-prevention-plan. To contact Patricia with information, call or WhatsApp (+34) 711086899.