Seaton Sluice is a very pleasant village situated in south east Northumberland. It lies on the coast at the mouth of the Seaton Burn, midway between Whitley Bay and Blyth. It has a population of about 3,000 people. This number is significantly increased during the summer months.

The Seaton Sluice Public Access Defibrillator Support Group (PAD Group) was formed in September 2017, with the aim to improve the survival rates of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, by raising funds in order to purchase, install and maintain Public Access Defibrillators, and provide free CPR and Defibrillator Awareness training.

Our PAD Group worked in partnership with Professor Michael Norton, Consultant Cardiologist at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle, who provided invaluable guidance and support.

Michael has worked in cardiology for most of his career, and is especially interested in cardiovascular blackouts and cardiac arrest.
Michael says:
“We want to see survival rates for cardiac arrest improving in the North East. We believe we can achieve this as a community by:
• Increasing awareness of cardiac arrest and how it is different from heart attack
• Increasing the number of people who can and will do CPR
• Increasing the availability of automated external defibrillators (AEDs)
Not everybody can be saved, but it is clear that more of our neighbours, friends and colleagues can survive sudden cardiac arrest to lead good quality lives.
Survival rates for out of hospital cardiac arrest can and should be higher. Areas with the highest survival rates are approximately six times higher than ours. We need to do better.”
Our PAD Group is also fortunate to have Gary Shaw, Senior Paramedic specialising in Cardiac and Trauma Care, as member of our group.

Gary supports our group as a Clinical Advisor, and also delivers the free CPR and Defibrillator Awareness training, bringing validation to what we are doing.

Gary says, “I fully support the Seaton Sluice PAD project and I am available to assist in any way I can”.

In order to deliver safe, effective and quality training, our PAD Group worked in partnership with OCN Credit4Learning to prepare a CPR and Defibrillation Awareness training programme, with clear and achievable learning outcomes.

Our PAD Group is very impressed with the continued support and guidance provided by OCN Credit4Learning, and their programme approval, and revalidation, ensures safe, effective and quality training for the schools, residents and businesses of Seaton Sluice.

Vicki Bester
Acting Chair and Trainer.