As part of a pilot project aimed at “saving more lives”, Quebec will install 100 automated external defibrillators (AEDs) available to the population across the province.
AEDs, which can restart a heart that has stopped beating by delivering an electric shock, will be installed near ATMs of National Bank and Desjardins financial institutions and will be accessible at all times.
“When a person has a cardiopulmonary arrest, the speed of the intervention is decisive for their chances of survival. Applying first aid maneuvers in the very first minutes can make all the difference. This is why it is so important that more AEDs be accessible to the population,” said Health Minister Christian Dubé in a press release.
The defibrillators will be located in the Estrie, Mauricie, Montérégie, Montreal, Lanaudière, Capitale-Nationale and Chaudière-Appalaches regions.
“In an aging population, it was very important to integrate this safety net. We have all experienced, directly or indirectly, a situation that could have ended positively if such equipment had been available,” said Pierre Lavoie, co-founder of the Grand Défi Pierre Lavoie.
The location of the defibrillators will be available on the Jacques-de Champlain Foundation’s mobile application, in addition to providing information regarding CPR. The locations were chosen because of their ease of access and regional distribution.
The implementation of the pilot project is the first part of the global strategy for the deployment of 1,000 automated external defibrillators announced last June. Depending on the results, it is expected that 900 additional defibrillators will be installed thereafter.