Friday, 15 December 2017
MEMBER for Northern Tablelands Adam Marshall has urged sporting groups across the region to make an application for a defibrillator, with less than a week until the program closes.
The NSW Government’s Local Sport Defibrillation Program is open across NSW until 20 December – offering funding for new defibrillators, training and maintenance.
“Cardiac arrest can be fatal – but quick action in the first eight minutes often proves vital to a patient’s survival,” Mr Marshall said.
“This program will roll out 2,500 Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) across NSW over the next 4 years, improving the chance one will be close if disaster strikes.
“I encourage local sporting clubs to apply for a grant to help fund an AED without delay – proper preparation could be the difference between life and death.”
The $4 million program will fund up to 50 per cent of the defibrillator cost, along with training and maintenance support.
Mr Marshall said the program would make sporting fields safer for thousands of Australians – both on and off the field.
“Each year 33,000 Australians will have a cardiac arrest, with the intensity of sport a potential risk factor,” Mr Marshall said.
“If even one life can be saved at a local club – that’s dozens of friends, loved ones and team members that will be saved the agony of a death due to cardiac arrest.”
The scheme is targeting community sports clubs, but applications from licensed sporting clubs and sports organisations associated with schools, churches universities, and councils will also be considered.
Applications close on 20 December 2017. For more information and to apply, visit sport.nsw.gov.au/clubs/grants