TRAFFIC wardens in Stafford are set to be the first in England to carry around a heart start machine to treat people who collapse in the town centre.
The officers will help reduce the time taken to treat people who experience heart attacks in the town centre from 10 minutes to around three or four.
The groundbreaking scheme was made possible following donations of £1,250 from local councillors.
Senior Civil Enforcement Officer (CEO), Bob Lee, said: “This is a first for England as far as I can tell - the only similar scheme we have found is in Edinburgh.
“Every minute of delay in getting a defibrillator to those patients who would benefit reduces the chances of survival by 10 per cent.” It is hoped the CEO’s new skills will give them new-found respect among Stafford folk after a spate of attacks on the wardens.
In the past few weeks a CEO was run over by an angry motorist in Stafford.
And Mr Lee’s daughter, Rachael, 23, was also spat at and pushed while trying to give someone a ticket.
Councillor Mark Heenan, who donated £500 from his local community fund, said: “They do get a bad reputation.
They are there to provide a service to the public - and not just to put tickets on cars.
“This is a good a good way of making people see that there’s more to it than that.
“Hopefully now if you are going to have a heart attack Stafford is the best town centre to have one.” Mr Lee, who came up with idea, was backed by contract manager Mark Shenton of Legion Group - the contractors who provide traffic wardens to borough council - to get the heart start machines into service.
He was set to agree a deal this week which would see the defibrillator carried around by CEOs during their town centre shifts.
West Midlands Ambulance Service has also provided free training to eight CEOs.
