has joined cross-party calls for more
defibrillators to be installed at football clubs around the
country following the cardiac arrest of Christian Eriksen. “I
have joined Mary Foy, the Labour MP for Durham, calling on the
Football Association to provide additional funding and speed up
the installation of this life saving equipment” says .
“Cardiac arrests like Christian Eriksen’s are thankfully very
rare: around 1 in 50,000 among sportspeople. But as we witnessed,
they do occur and are far more common amongst spectators. The
Denmark v Finland game also highlighted how crucial it is that
there is pitch side access to life-saving medical equipment
whether that be at the European Championships in Copenhagen, an
Under-15s game in Burntwood, a walking football match in
Lichfield, or a 5-a-side pick up game in Birmingham. Christian
Eriksen’s life was undoubtedly saved by the quick actions of the
players, officials, and medical staff in Copenhagen.
“The response, especially by Danish captain Simon Kjaer and
Referee Anthony Taylor, has shown the need for the expansion of
the FA’s Emergency Aid course to become compulsory to a
delegation of players, coaches, and referees at each grassroots
club and County FA up and down the country. The FA Emergency Aid
course ‘aims to provide the participant with the knowledge,
practical skills and confidence to be able to attend a conscious
or unconscious casualty, ensuring that appropriate care is given
until the emergency medical services arrive and takeover’. These
were skills we saw to life-saving effect on the pitch in
Copenhagen. It took just 1 minute and 48 seconds for responders
to begin CPR at the match in Denmark; expanding participation in
the Emergency Aid course will help more people feel comfortable
in their skills of CPR and other life-saving procedures. But
equipment is needed too.”
In a joint letter to the FA, Mary and Michael ask: “We call on
the FA to give an update on the take up of phased rollout of
discounted defibrillators that was announced in 2019’s ‘Heart
Safe’ campaign for grassroots clubs. Further to that, we call on
the FA to provide regular updates on the number of defibrillators
that have been installed in grassroots clubs and pitches around
the country as the game continues to grow in the UK, working with
local authorities to ensure that at sporting venues no one is
more than one minute away from a defibrillator. We also call on
the FA to fund defibrillators for grassroots clubs that need
them, rather than offering discounts.”
