HEART attack victims across West Somerset and the Wellington area could soon be attended by ‘good sams’ until paramedics arrive.

South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) has launched a ‘GoodSAM’ scheme where people who have been through training can be alerted to nearby cardiac arrest calls.

‘GoodSAM’, which stands for ‘Good Smartphone Activated Medics’, uses mobile GPS technology to notify the nearest available responder when a cardiac arrest happens within a third of a mile of their location.

Anybody registered with the ‘GoodSAM Responder’ app, will be notified when a 999 call is received by the ambulance control room and the responders can then begin cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in the important minutes before an ambulance arrives.

SWASFT currently has more than 2,000 ‘GoodSAM’ responders trained in CPR ready to be dispatched via the app to nearby cardiac arrests.

The expansion in SWASFT’s alerting means anybody with a certified basic life support qualification or who has completed the Resuscitation Council UK Lifesaver online training can register to respond through the app.

A SWASFT spokesperson said: “There is no expectation that a ‘GoodSAM Responder’ will be carrying any equipment.

“The most important part is to cut down the time until CPR is started.”

SWASFT head of volunteering and community services Jane Whichello said: “This is a significant step forward in saving more lives, as unfortunately survival rates for those experiencing an out of hospital cardiac arrest in the UK remain stubbornly low.

“Time is critical when somebody has a cardiac arrest, and the earlier good quality CPR begins, the better the chance of survival.

“By including trained public responders in our ‘GoodSAM’ network, we hope to strengthen the chain of survival’ which begins with early recognition of a cardiac arrest, and early, good quality, CPR.

“The Resuscitation Council UK has found that around 80 per cent of cardiac arrests take place in the home.

“By registering with this app, members of the public trained in CPR would be alerted to neighbours and any cardiac arrest call within 500 metres.

“Although the proportion of cardiac arrests receiving bystander CPR is high in the South West, around 80 per cent, its effectiveness could often be improved by trained individuals alerted through ‘GoodSAM’.

“We often describe this as a ‘virtual shout for help’ using technology to help get trained people to an incident very quickly to perform lifesaving CPR until an ambulance crew arrive.”

SWAST said opening up ‘GoodSAM’ alerts to more trained individuals was recognition of and empowering those willing to step forward and help save lives.

The system means when an emergency 999 call received by SWASFT is classified as a cardiac arrest, details will automatically be sent through to the app, which will then alert the nearest registered responders.

If the responder is available, they can accept the alert and will be able to see the location of the incident, or decline it and the next nearest responder will then be alerted.

People can find out more and register on the GoodSAM website.