A PHILANTHROPIC Mount Gambier law firm will help to potentially save lives by donating a defibrillator to the Mount Gambier Australian Italo Club.
The club is home to International Soccer Club, weekly bocce tournaments, as well as social functions and events.
While the club has plenty of veterans among its membership, this lifesaving equipment will also be on hand to save lives of players on the pitch or spectators on the sidelines.
Statistics show defibrillation within the first few minutes of a sudden cardiac arrest increases the chance of survival to more than 70pc.
Alarmingly, 90pc of people who suffer a sudden cardiac arrest do not survive without defibrillation.
ASW Lawyers principal John Williamson – who is also a board member of the Mount Gambier Australia Italo Club – said his law agency was proud to be able to provide the long-standing and popular organisation with an automatic defibrillator.
“A sudden cardiac arrest can happen to anyone at any time, age or fitness level,” Mr Williamson said.
While he hoped the state-of-the-art defibrillator would never be used, he said it was vital to have this equipment on stand-by.
He said his law firm wanted to donate the defibrillator because Casadio Park was a sporting and community hub, which also had ageing members.
“There have been a lot of articles recently in the media showing how important defibrillators are to saving lives,” Mr Williamson said.
“There was a 17-year-old at a sports club who recently had a heart attack.”
He said the club also hosted a myriad of social functions throughout the year.
Mr Williamson said the need for a defibrillator had been discussed at the club’s board meetings.
“Most sporting clubs now have a defibrillator and the Mount Gambier club needed one given the high number of people who play soccer and bocce,” he said.
Club president Gino Margiotta – who praised ASW Lawyers for their donation – said the defibrillator meant a great deal to the club.
He said the club was a tight-knit family orientated organisation and it wanted to not only protect its own members, but the wider community.
“We have a Lions club convention booked in for next year, where we will have 300 people, and we also have weekly bocce tournaments and other community events throughout the year,” Mr Margiotta said.
“In the event something happens, we know the defibrillator is there.”
He said the club members, including bar staff, would receive training on how to use the defibrillator.
“It is not hard, it tells you what to do,” Mr Margiotta said.
