Lyme Heartbeat are extremely grateful to Leslie and Shirley Gamelin for a very generous £2,000 donation which will maintain the two defibrillators we manage in Charmouth for the foreseeable future. The couple originally arranged and paid for the installation of the defibrillator outside Charmouth Pharmacy, which we now look after, and were pleased to know the unit has been used on a number of occasions in the past 12 months.

Lyme Heartbeat is a local voluntary organisation which supplies and maintains public access defibrillators around Lyme Regis and Charmouth. A defibrillator is a device used to give an electric shock to help restart a patient’s heart when they are in cardiac arrest. We currently look after 11 units, undertaking frequent checks and ensuring they remain registered with the ambulance service. 

Every time a defibrillator is called upon, the pads need be replaced at a cost of around £65 and, even if they are not used, must be replaced every two years. Additional ongoing costs include replacing the batteries which need replacing every few years at a cost of around £335 and first aid rescue ready kits plus maintenance of the cabinets which house the units.