Saving lives through design

A few years ago I had to do first aid training as part of the mandatory training for the youth football team I coached. This included learning how to use a defibrillator - something you obviously hope to never have to use. I was impressed how well it explained each step of what you need to do.

About the same time, the bowling club where my parents play fitted a defibrillator and about a week later it was used to save the life of someone who collapsed whilst playing.

A start-up in the US is looking to redesign the automated defibrillator so that they are smaller, cheaper and could be deployed anywhere including the home or even carried with people. This means that anyone with one of these devices could potentially respond more quickly to incidents close by when an alarm is raised than an emergency vehicle.

I found the video on their site incredibly emotional as it highlights how it could make a difference. It is still waiting FDA approval and as far as I know is currently aimed at the US market, at least initially. Hopefully soon it will be saving lives.

Links

This tiny defibrillator turns your neighborhood into a communal ER