As part of Shocktober – Hato Hone St John’s CPR awareness month – Bay of Plenty residents can take part in free CPR training lessons at two locations in the motu this month.

With Shocktober in its third year running, St John is on a mission to empower as many people as possible with lifesaving skills of how to respond to someone having a cardiac arrest.

St John community education national manager Jacci Tatnell said Aotearoa has some of the worst cardiac arrest survival rates in the world and her organisation wants to turn this around by enabling New Zealanders to learn its 3 Steps for Life skills to save lives.

“Knowing what to do in these situations is a necessity, especially when you consider our grim statistics. In New Zealand, seven people every day will have an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, with only 11% surviving,” said Tatnell.

On October 24, Western Bay of Plenty residents will have a chance to participate in the free training from 1.30pm-2.30pm at Katikati Community Centre, 45 Beach Rd. A free session for Tauranga residents is on October 30 at the Hato Hone St John building, 46 17th Ave, from 6pm-7pm. Register for either at: taurangaadmin@stjohn.org.nz

Tatnell said the 3 Steps for Life skills empower people with the knowledge and confidence to act quickly in an emergency. “They are simple to learn – Call 111; Start CPR; and use an Automated External Defribrillator – also known as an AED. Our sessions teach everyone how to perform CPR and use a defibrillator.”

Tatnell said survival chances dramatically improve the sooner CPR begins.

“We want everyone to have the confidence to perform the three steps that can double a person’s chance of surviving.

“We’re calling for people to go along to the free 3 Steps for Life CPR training sessions in their community.”

St John also encourages Kiwis to download the CPR app Lifesaving apps.