Lesley
(second left) and Bernard Gallacher (centre) with (from left) Richard
Hills, Ryder Cup Director, Jo Jerrome, Deputy CEO Arrhythmia Alliance, and Sandy Jones, CEO of the PGA
Picture by courtesy of Corporate Event Photography(c)
NEWS RELEASE
Former
European Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher today launched a
nationwide campaign which could potentially help to save the lives of
golfers of all abilities and ages.
Drawing
on his own personal experience of suffering a sudden cardiac arrest on
August 28, the 1995 winning captain was joined by a gallery of friends
and colleagues from the world of sport and show business at Wentworth
Club to activate
the Bernard Gallacher Defibrillator Campaign 2014.
It
was only thanks to the availability of an automated external
defibrillator (AED) following his collapse during a dinner reception at The Marcliffe at Pitfodels Hotel, to the west of Aberdeen, along with early-response CPR treatment at the venue, that
Gallacher was able to regain consciousness
and take steps towards a full recovery.
However,
that close brush with death inspired Bernard and his wife, Lesley, to
announce plans to lead a campaign for AEDs to be widely available in
every single golf club and driving range in the United Kingdom and
Ireland.
With
the Gallachers’ profile and encouragement, allied to a fundraising
campaign being run concurrently with the PGA and Arrhythmia Alliance –
the Heart Rhythm Charity - an estimated 2600 golfing venues and around
4,000,000 club golfers
could benefit from the Campaign.
Gallacher,
who was speaking at the Campaign launch in the Ballroom of the
clubhouse where he spent over 20 years as a Club Professional, said: “I
consider myself incredibly fortunate that a defibrillator was on hand in
Aberdeen to resuscitate
me following my sudden cardiac arrest. But for that AED and the
quick-thinking, expertise and life-saving skills of the medical
personnel in the room that night, I wouldn’t be here today.
“Without
early intervention, an individual has just a 5% chance of surviving a
sudden cardiac arrest, so Lesley and I felt it appropriate to try to
ensure others are equally fortunate should they collapse in or around a
golfing venue in
future.
“Currently,
just 30% of golf clubs have a defibrillator and our stated aim is to
try to raise awareness of the importance of having an AED close by in
case of emergency, and to increase that figure considerably by
encouraging every club
or driving range in the UK and Ireland to have at least one
public-access defibrillator by the end of 2014.
“Cardiac
arrest can happen to anyone at any time, and possibly on the golf
course. We want to do whatever it takes to raise the level of awareness
of defibrillators and to get them into more clubs around the country.”
Trudie
Lobban MBE, Founder and CEO of Arrhythmia Alliance, said: “Bernard’s
experience has shown the life-saving difference of early CPR and use of a
defibrillator. We are delighted to join him and the PGA in this
campaign for every golf
club in the UK and Ireland to have their own device.
“An
estimated 100,000 people in the UK die each year from sudden cardiac
arrest (SCA). It kills more people than AIDS, breast cancer and lung
cancer combined. Golf clubs nationally serve more than four million
people each year, but only
a third currently have a defibrillator. Our aim is for every club to
have one by the end of 2014.”
Sandy
Jones, Chief Executive of the PGA, added: “The PGA is delighted to join
with Bernard in this campaign to install defibrillators in every golf
club in Great Britain and Ireland. It has been a long standing ambition
of my own and the
PGA that this should happen, and as we have seen through the near
tragic experience of Bernard, it is vital that such equipment is
available at the time of need.
“Defibrillators
in golf clubs, without doubt, will save lives and we thank Bernard and
Lesley for allowing us to join with them in this campaign.”
George
O’Grady, Chief Executive of the European Tour, commented: “Bernard is
one of our great champions and it came as a huge shock to hear what
happened to him, but also a massive relief to then learn of the
importance of the emergency
procedures which helped to save his life.
“All
of us at the European Tour are fully supportive of Bernard and Lesley’s
campaign to get AEDs into every golfing facility in the UK and Ireland
and we will provide all possible assistance to ensure the Bernard
Gallacher Defibrillator
Campaign achieves its ultimate goal.”
Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA)
SCA
happens because of a problem in the heart’s electrical system,
caused by an abnormal heart rhythm; or cardiac arrhythmia. The most
common arrhythmia that leads to SCA is called ventricular fibrillation
(VF).
A
person's heart will stop beating without warning when they suffer SCA,
they will collapse, lose consciousness and look extremely pale. SCA
strikes without warning, regardless of age, killing 100,000 people in
the UK every year. It requires
immediate treatment to keep blood pumping and to restart the heart to
prevent brain damage and death, therefore immediate defibrillation is
critical.
CPR alone will not restart a heart following SCA
but can keep the victim alive until an ambulance crew arrives – which
in the UK is usually within eight minutes of a call to 999.
·
CPR alone saves 9% of victims
·
Immediate CPR and defibrillation with an AED increases chance of survival to
50%
Survival rates drop 7-10% every minute without defibrillation. Quick action can make the difference between life and death.
For further information, please contact:
EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS
Labels: GOLF NEWS