NATIMUK'S National Hotel has taken a safer step for the community by making a defibrillator available for public use.
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Hotel licensee Bill Lovel said in cases of emergency, the nearest medical facility was in Horsham. He said it could take up to 20 minutes for an ambulance to arrive for medical help.
The defibrillator was donated as part of an ongoing initiative by the Australian Hotels Association Victoria named HotelCare.
The hotel received the defibrillator in February and so far it hasn't been used. Mr Lovel said that good news.
"It is there as a precaution only and hopefully we never have to use it," he said.
Mr Lovel said previously there was only one defibrillator available in town, located at the Natimuk United Football Club. However, that defibrillator was not accessible to the public due to being contained inside the club's premises.
The new defibrillator is attached to the front of the hotel for community use.
Mr Lovel said there was a high number of elderly people in the district, which made the town more prone to emergency medical situations.
"My understanding is the quicker you can get onto it, the better it is. The long term outcome is much better," he said.
He said the defibrillator was self-explanatory and instructional, and that anyone could use it.
"It actually (takes you through the) steps. Once you turn it on, it tells you to follow this (the instructions) and so forth.Then you quite obviously zap the people," he said.
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