Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Course

Instead of making our way to our units, we, CLT Cheryl Lim and CLT Suhairi Roslan made our way to Civil Defence Academy to attend the Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Course on the 28th of March 2008.

This was a half day course, led by CPT Ithnin Admid and the staff at CDA HD MED. Vocation Br. He guided us during the whole duration of the course and learnt many things which were relevant and practical to our everyday life making us much more proficient in our live saving skills. Early defibrillation being the 3rd stage of the chain of survival will greatly increase the chance for our casualty to survive.

The first part of the course was the theory lesson, which was taught by WO Leon and WO Samantha. During the lecture we gained a lot of new knowledge, like a term called “ventricular fibrillation” which was a state where the heart needs an electrical surge to help revive it and that is the only time defibrillation can be used.

The second part of the course was the theory test. It was a rather stressful test as our understanding of the lecture was put to the test as they asked about almost everything we had learnt less than half an hour beforehand. While the answers were fresh in our minds, it was difficult to put knowledge we are unfamiliar with to the test. Thankfully, everyone passed the test on the first attempt.

The third part of the course was the practical lesson, where we teamed up two to a group and learned how to use the defibrillator and we got time to try and practice. Each group was assigned a paramedic to teach and train them on the use and procedure of the defibrillator. We got WO Leon as our trainer and he taught us how to use the defibrillator and he gave us scenarios to make sure we knew what we were doing. While practicing, LTA Jonathan went around assuming the role of a loved one to the “casualty” and on one occasion, he “died” as CLT Suhairi had accidentally applied the defibrillator when he was still in physical contact with the casualty, which in a real situation would have resulted in death.

And last but not least, came the practical test which was in the form of an oral and practical test. This test however did not go as smoothly as the theory test as participants found difficulty adapting to situations should the situation change unexpectedly. While it was challenging, we all made it and are now AED qualified first aiders.

Done By: P/CLT Cheryl Lim & P/CLT Suhairi Roslan