News release: October 30, 2023
This CPR Month, Peel Regional Paramedic Services encourages you to act to save a life
BRAMPTON, ON (October 30, 2023) - Every 10 days, someone in Peel region uses a registered AED (Automated External Defibrillator) to help a cardiac arrest victim. Around 70% of the time, the victim survives.
This high survival rate is exactly what Peel Regional Paramedic Services envisioned when it started its Public Access Defibrillation (PAD) Program 9 years ago. Since 2014, it has been placing hundreds of life-saving devices in public places, in partnership with Brampton, Caledon, Mississauga and the Greater Toronto Airport Authority, and encouraging people to use them.
An AED can restart a heart of a person in cardiac arrest. It’s safe and easy to use, even with little or no training.
Peel Regional Paramedic Services has also added hundreds of publicly- and privately-owned AEDs to Peel Region's AED registry. Once registered, the AED becomes part of the Medical Priority Dispatch System and visible to Ambulance Communications Officers (ACO). When someone calls 911 in a cardiac emergency, the ACO can locate the closest AED, and tell the caller how to access and use it before paramedics arrive.
When someone provides CPR and uses an AED in the crucial seconds after someone experiences sudden cardiac arrest, the chance of survival dramatically increases.
This CPR Month, Peel Regional Paramedic Services encourages all residents to learn CPR and how to use an AED so Peel region can remain one of the safest places to live. It also requests all businesses and other AED-owners, such as private schools and places of worship, to register their AED on Peel Region's website.
Peel paramedics respond to more than 1500 cardiac arrests each year. If a bystander can quickly access an AED and use it in combination with CPR in the crucial minutes before paramedics arrive, the chances of survival can double. I encourage all businesses to register their AED with Peel Regional Paramedic Service's PAD registry, and all residents to be prepared to use one. Together, we can save more lives in Peel region.
Paramedic Chief (A) Brian Gibson
Additional information
- Peel Regional Paramedic Services has placed more than 600 AEDs in public places for anyone to use. Look for them in places such as libraries, community centres and swimming pools.
- Most cardiac arrests take place within 250 metres of an AED.
- There are more than 1800 AEDs registered in Peel Region’s AED registry.
- If you register your AED and it ends up being used, Peel Regional Paramedic Services will replace the pads and battery, and help you get it rescue-ready.
- In 2020, the Ontario legislature passed Bill 141, the Defibrillator Registration and Public Access Act, making AED registration mandatory. The Bill has not been enacted yet.
For more information about Peel Regional Paramedic Services' PAD program, visit https://peelregion.ca/paramedics/defibrillator-program/create/ or email PADProgram@peelregion.ca
Media contact
Monica Misra-Lui
Communications Specialist
Peel Region
About Peel Region
In 2024, Peel Region marks its 50th anniversary. Peel Region works with residents and partners to create a healthy, safe, and connected Community for Life for approximately 1.5 million people and over 200,000 businesses in Brampton, Mississauga and Caledon. Peel's services touch the lives of residents every day. For more information explore peelregion.ca and follow us on X @regionofpeel and Instagram @peelregion.ca.
On December 13, 2023, the Ontario government announced that Peel Region will not be dissolved, and that Bill 112 legislation will be updated to reflect service delivery in Peel. Services for residents and businesses will continue without interruption. For updates and more information, visit Peel's transition page.
