Kadeltshofen, Nordholz and Biberberg now have the medical devices that help save lives: Kadeltshofen, Nordholz and Biberberg now have defibrillators. A “defi” helps save lives. If the heart suddenly beats too fast and unrhythmically, the defibrillator emits one or more electric shocks so that the arrhythmia is corrected.
The health region plus district of Neu-Ulm has now equipped the villages of Kadeltshofen, Nordholz and Biberberg with three such devices. “Especially in rural areas with not such a good infrastructure, such an investment makes sense,” explains Marc Löchner, the office manager of the Health Region plus in the Neu-Ulm district office.
The defibrillators that have now been purchased can also be easily operated by people who are not medically trained. The devices automatically give precise instructions to the operator and only trigger when the internal sensors actually detect that the emergency patient needs an electrical impulse.
Sudden cardiac arrest is one of the most common causes of death in Germany. According to estimates by the German Heart Foundation, around 66,000 people die of it in this country every year. If a defibrillator had been quickly at hand, many of them could have been saved from death.
In Kadeltshofen, the defi is now stationed at the rectory in the centre of the village. “The parish hall is very centrally located, also for Raunertshofen, Remmeltshofen or Roth/Berg. There are 2500 inhabitants within a radius of three kilometres. Equipment safety is also guaranteed here because social control works,” is how Marc Löchner justifies the choice of location. In Nordholz and Biberberg, the defibrillator is also easily accessible and is mounted on the outside of the fire station.
The money for this initiative comes mainly from the Free State of Bavaria. It provides a total of almost 400,000 euros for the purchase of these life-saving devices as well as their central installation and training. Grant recipients can be districts and independent cities in which there is a health region plus. A corresponding funding guideline of the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior came into force a few weeks ago.
