Thousands of children to get CPR lessons

More than 35,000 school children are to be taught life-saving skills in a single day as part of a campaign by the Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS).

Off-duty health professionals will visit 172 secondary schools across Yorkshire later to train pupils in a life-saving technique known as Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).

Jason Carlyon from YAS said today's mass training session was "vital".

He said three students who took part in the Restart a Heart Day campaign last year had since used CPR "to help save the lives of parents".

Mr Carlyon, community engagement manager with YAS, said: "What happens in the first few minutes after someone has suffered a cardiac arrest is vital.

"If bystanders can call 999 and start CPR while sending someone to retrieve the nearest defibrillator, that person’s chances of survival can triple."

He said the fact three pupils who learnt CPR last year had gone on to save the lives of parents was "incredible" and emphasised "the importance of our campaign and knowing what to do".

As part of the mass CPR training day patients whose lives were saved by the life-saving technique will tell their story in schools.

Charlotte Hogg, from Boroughbridge in North Yorkshire, will tell pupils at The Forest School in Knaresborough how she helped to save her father’s life when she was 16 after he suffered a cardiac arrest in bed.

Ms Hogg had been given first aid training as a Girl Guide and together with her mum, used CPR to help save his life.

She said she was "thrilled to be a part of the phenomenal training session".

Castleford ambulance care assistant, Mark Spedding, who had a cardiac arrest while calling 999 for an ambulance, is to share his story with students at Penistone Grammar School in South Yorkshire.

Mr Spedding said he had also released the audio of the 999 call he made to raise awareness about the importance of early CPR.

"Fewer than one in 10 people survive an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, but we can change that if more people learn CPR," he said.

Other survivors of cardiac arrests have voiced their support for the training scheme.

Hospital transport crew, Megan Jordan and Andrew Beverley, performed CPR on Raymond Berry, from Keighley, after they were flagged down when he collapsed by the roadside.

Ms Jordan said she felt "truly privileged to have helped a member of the public in their hour of need".

Mr Berry served in the RAF for 34 years, during which time he worked as a first responder on search and rescue helicopters.

"Having used CPR many times over the years, I know how important it is for people to learn this skill," he said.

Meanwhile, Karen Jenner, 63, from Leeds, has raised £2,500 for YAS after an ambulance crew saved her life by administering CPR when she had a heart attack.

"I was down for two minutes while they resuscitated me," she said.

Ms Jenner said CPR had played a "vital part" in saving her life and was "a skill that anyone could learn".

A spokesperson for YAS said since Restart a Heart Day began in 2014 the service had provided free CPR training to more than 234,708 youngsters at the majority of secondary schools across the region.

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