KIND-hearted youngsters from the University of Worcester have breathed new life into a campaign to install a defibrillator at a nearby shop by taking on a 24-hour CPR marathon.
Students from Worcester’s paramedic society completed the marathon by taking turns to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation on a manikin for 24 hours without stopping.
The students were joined by university staff as they worked through the night without missing a beat on the manikin’s chest.
The event raised almost £1,000 for Midlands Air Ambulance, Cardiac Risk in the Young, and an ongoing fundraising campaign to have a defibrillator installed at a nearby shop.
Society students were also aiming to highlight that women are 28 per cent are less likely to be given CPR by a passer-by.
Reasons given for this statistic include embarrassment, fear, and doubt about touching or exposing their chest while giving help.
Third-year Paramedic student Izzy Gamble, who helped organise the event, said: “When I first saw that statistic and heard people are worried about exposing a chest or taking a bra off, it really surprised me.
“I thought, ‘why is this such a problem?’
“We have ‘Annie’ dolls which we use to train CPR, but why don’t they have breasts? Why are they male dolls?
“It got me thinking and I thought we’d try and get the word out at the CPR Marathon to let people know it’s ok to give CPR to women.
“I feel ecstatic we’ve completed this challenge, and I’m so proud of the team for all the time, effort and hard work they’ve put into the project with me.”
