Parliamentary Estate: Defibrillators

(asked on 13th July 2023) - View Source

Question

To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the House of Commons Commission, what steps the Commission is taking to publicise the location of defibrillators on the parliamentary estate.


Answered by
Charles Walker Portrait
Charles Walker
This question was answered on 19th July 2023

The Parliamentary Health and Wellbeing Service (PHWS) is responsible for the Parliamentary defibrillators. The Parliamentary Safety Team is responsible for First Aid training which includes the defibrillator training programme.

There are 32 defibrillators located across the entire Parliamentary estate. All Defibrillator locations are listed and available on the parliamentary intranet. Posters detailing defibrillator locations will shortly be displayed on notice boards in buildings across the estate. The defibrillators are located in open wall cabinets in public, high risk or high traffic areas and signed accordingly.

New maps of each floor have been designed detailing defibrillator locations in the Palace of Westminster (PoW), Portcullis House (PCH), and Cromwell Green and are available on the parliamentary intranet. Maps for the rest of the buildings are currently under design and will be made available once complete. There will be further publicity on the locations of the defibrillators.

Training to use the defibrillators is included within First Aid Training courses. Security Teams and PHWS undergo training in defibrillator use. Ad hoc requests for additional training can be made to the Clinical Nurse Advisor or any of the PHWS team who will manage this accordingly. We work closely with the London Ambulance Service to ensure our defibrillator programme is delivered to the highest of standards and within best practice guidance as detailed by the Resuscitation Council UK.

Defibrillators are designed so that anyone can turn on (whether trained or not) and will be provided with prompts and directions for use.

The Administration Committee will look at this further after the Summer Recess. Officials will be in touch with the hon. Member so that she may contribute her views.

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