A new research survey commissioned by NHS Charities Together shows that four in 10 people in the UK have a family member or friend who has experienced a cardiac arrest or have themselves experienced one. Yet it also reveals fewer than three in 10 people in the UK would be confident in knowing how to do CPR in an emergency(1).

The charity is highlighting a campaign to raise vital funds to help the ambulance service charities equip communities with the skills and equipment to save lives, after the YouGov survey of over 2000 people across the UK also found that only 38% of adults in the UK are confident there is a defibrillator in their local area and know where it is.

Cardiac arrest – where the heart stops beating – is a medical emergency. More than 30,000 people have a cardiac arrest in the community every year, and sadly, more than 9 in 10 people die(2).

Giving CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and defibrillation can save a life during cardiac arrest, but fast action is vital. Every minute without CPR and defibrillation reduces the chances of survival by up to 10%3. Being able to spot the signs and act quickly, by calling for helping and giving CPR, is crucial.

NHS Charities Together’s campaign will help more people survive if they have a cardiac arrest in the community – and has begun with the latest Omaze draw to win a town house in Chelsea, which closes on 26 November. The money raised will enable more volunteer community first responders and members of the public to receive training in basic life-saving skills and will provide more defibrillators in rural communities.

The funds will support projects that help to save more lives, like Rowan Hibbert – who was 20 months old when he choked on a carrot and went into cardiac arrest. His life was saved thanks to fast action by community first responder Tomos Hughes, paramedics and the ambulance service. Seven years on, Tomos is still close to the family and Rowan knows him as the man who saved his life.

Tomos, who has been awarded a BEM for his work with the Welsh Ambulance Service for installing many defibrillators quickly in North Wales, said: "I volunteer as a Community First Responder to help the community because, in the early stages of a cardiac arrest, you’ve only got minutes.

“Little Rowan’s story is one that always stays with me. I arrived within 10 minutes of him choking and was able to start CPR and restart his heart which saved his life. The deafening silence when I arrived at his house filled me with dread. As a community first responder, you must remain calm and do everything in your power to save that life and reassure the family. Without my fast action or the subsequent help from the other services, he wouldn’t be alive, but thanks to the training I received I was able to save Rowan’s life.”

The first part of NHS Charities Together’s campaign is the current Omaze house draw, where one lucky person is guaranteed to win a stunning Chelsea town house worth an incredible £5,000,000, along with £100,000. The draw will raise crucial funds for NHS Charities Together to help ambulance service charities equip communities with the skills and equipment to save lives.

NHS Charities Together CEO, Ellie Orton OBE, said: “We’re so grateful to every person who has entered the Omaze draw so far or will enter during this final week. The campaign will raise vital funds and awareness, enabling us to provide training, volunteers and equipment. This extra support will help ambulance services, who are under increasing pressure as we head into the tough winter months. We know healthcare services are most effective when community services, volunteers and hospitals work together.

“Sadly, I lost my own father to cardiac arrest, and often wonder if things could have been different, had volunteers or community first responders who knew how to do CPR been nearby.

“This survey suggests that still fewer than three in 10 people in the UK might know how to or are confident to deliver CPR. So there’s more work to do here, as when it’s administered correctly it can make the difference between someone living and someone dying.

“The money donated to us from the Omaze Million Pound House Draw is just the start of a larger programme to provide volunteers with training and new equipment to help more people survive if they have a cardiac arrest in the community, particularly in rural areas where people have less access to support because emergency resources are sparse.”

You can enter the Omaze Million Pound House Draw to win the London townhouse by visiting www.omaze.co.uk. The draw closes on Sunday 26 November for online entries and Tuesday 28 November for postal entries.

For advice on CPR and to locate your closest defibrillator go to: (https://nhscharitiestogether.co.uk/omaze)

NOTES TO EDITORS

For further information, please contact Maria Tennant, Head of Media (maria@anhsc.org.uk) or Jess Lloyd, Media Manager (jessica@anhsc.org.uk) at NHS Charities Together.

The YouGov survey was commissioned by NHS Charities Together in November 2023. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2,100 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 16th - 17th November 2023. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

Key findings include:

• four in 10 people in the UK have a family member (28%) or friend (7%) who has experienced a cardiac arrest or have themselves (3%) experienced one

• fewer than three in 10 people in the UK would be confident in knowing how to do CPR in an emergency (28%)

• 38% of adults in the UK are confident there is a defibrillator in their local area and know where it is.

About NHS Charities Together

NHS Charities Together is the national, independent charity caring for the NHS, working with a network of over 230 NHS charities to provide extra support in every hospital, health board, ambulance, community, and mental health trust around the UK. To date NHS Charities Together has allocated over £149 million to fund a range of projects supporting NHS staff, patients and volunteers. These include counselling services, helplines, and other mental health support for NHS staff, plus training for emergency responders, research into long COVID, and specialist services and equipment. The charity has also funded over 325 community organisations to tackle health inequalities and prevent ill health in the community, helping to reduce the pressure on overstretched NHS services. Together we can help achieve better health and care for us all.

About Omaze UK: (https://omaze.co.uk/pages/about-omaze)

Omaze offers the chance to win once-in-a-lifetime prizes to support incredible charities. Since in launch in the UK in 2020, Omaze has raised £20,450,000 for Teenage Cancer Trust, British Heart Foundation, The Prince’s Trust, the NSPCC, GOSH Charity, Cancer Research UK, Alzheimer’s Research UK, RSPCA, Blood Cancer UK, Global’s Make Some Noise, Dogs Trust, Marie Curie, RNLI and Macmillan. Omaze is listed on the Fundraising Regulator’s register of approved professional fundraisers in the UK and is committed to upholding good fundraising practice.

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