Health plea

MarinePALS CEO Captain Pradeep Chawla has called for defibrillators to become mandatory on board vessels to prevent avoidable deaths at sea. The difference between life and death in sudden cardiac arrest can be four minutes. Survival falls by around 10 per cent for every minute without defibrillation. When automated external defibrillators are used within the first few minutes, survival rates can reach 50 per cent to 70 per cent. Without defibrillation, survival is unlikely. Yet there is still no universal requirement for merchant vessels to carry AEDs.