City Hall will install automated external defibrillators (AED) in crowded locations in Bangkok under a plan to provide emergency assistance for people having a cardiac arrest.
Deputy Bangkok governor Taweesak Lertprapan said the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) will install the portable devices at government offices, public parks, sports stadiums, railway stations, department stores and other busy locations.
Initially, a total of 200 AEDs will be installed at the city's 50 district offices, youth centres, and public parks run by the BMA, Mr Taweesak said.
The BMA attaches importance to city residents' healthcare, particularly medical emergencies involving people suffering cardiac arrest, he said.
In light of this, the BMA's Erawan medical emergency centre has launched a project to train teachers to administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and use the AED devices at nine schools run by the BMA, the deputy city governor said.
A total of 3,089 teachers have signed up for the training which will run until December this year.
Teachers who complete the training can pass on the knowledge to their students who in turn are expected to spread word of the life-saving techniques and the use of the AEDs among family members and their communities, Mr Taweesak said.
This means a cardiac arrest patient's chance of survival will increase, he said, adding the Erawan centre has also been instructed to teach CPR and how to use the devices to members of the general public.
Mr Taweesak yesterday also presided over the launch of the project and took the receipt of nine CRP manikins from the faculty of medicine of Prince of Songkla University.
