Defibrillator registry set to be launched in P.E.I.
New registry will be part of province's new medical emergency dispatch system
A registry of all AEDs or defibrillators in P.E.I. will be launched by fall with help from Island EMS and the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
The registry will be connected to the new medical emergency dispatch system being launched in August, said Matthew Spidel, operations manager for Island EMS.
The new system will also allow 911 dispatchers to instruct people how to use the AED, in case there is someone there who is not familiar with the device.
"So whenever a call comes in for say a cardiac arrest the software will identify automatically and alert the owner of the closest AED, that there's this cardiac arrest," said Spidel.
"And the software will ask them if they are able to respond. I mean the sooner the AED gets to the person the better the chances of a positive outcome."
Spidel said an estimate indicates there are probably between 200 to 300 defibrillators on the Island.
It will be up to the owners of those defibrillators to decide whether to register or not.
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With files from Laura Chapin