CPR lessons available on NHS following Christian Eriksen’s collapse - where can you get them?

A cardiac arrest suffered by a professional football player during a Euro 2020 match has prompted the NHS to offer CPR lessons run by volunteers.

Danish football player Christian Eriksen collapsed on the pitch on Saturday 12 June, during a match between Denmark and Finland in the Euro 2020 tournament.

The former Tottenham Hotspur player received medical treatment, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), which ultimately saved his life.

Now, a group of NHS volunteers have come together to teach CPR training, in a project launched by England’s national medical director, Professor Stephen Powis, and St John Ambulance.

The ambulance service said Eriksen’s collapse, which many witnessed live on TV, sparked a 1,000 per cent increase in calls asking for CPR training, while searches for how to use a defibrillator went up 1,900 per cent.

The new initiative will see professionals teach the public CPR and will also include how to use a defibrillator machine.

According to the NHS, just one in three people in England currently gives CPR when someone suffers a cardiac arrest.

It is hoped the training this initiative will provide could double the number of lives saved.

Professor Powis said: “Since Eriksen’s collapse at the weekend, we have also seen kind-hearted Brits sharing information online on how to do CPR and save a life.

“Today, I’m calling on them to go one step further and train to teach CPR as we know this will mean more lives like Christian Eriksen’s will be saved.”

Powis hopes the training will give people the confidence to administer treatment in emergency situations while waiting for paramedics to arrive.

He said: “If more people had the confidence and skills to call 999 quickly, deliver effective CPR until the ambulance crew arrive, and use a public access defibrillator, the number of lives saved would double.

“We saw a massive rush in willing volunteers to help life-saving activity during the pandemic and we hope that even more people will be inspired to join our Eriksen’s Army, learn CPR and become life-savers.”

Where can I get CPR lessons?

Free online CPR and defibrillator courses will run on the St John Ambulance website.

More information will be available about how and where to access the courses soon.

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