Study reveals Australians would rather have coffee in the office over life-saving technology

The study - conducted by St John Ambulance - has revealed an alarming number of Australian workplaces don't have a defibrillator. Just as alarming is the lack of knowledge Australians have about the life-saving device.

St John Ambulance surveyed a National Representative sample of 1000 Australians aged between 18 and 45 and found 28 per cent didn't know what sudden cardiac arrest is and, of those who did, 78 per cent did not think it could happen to people under 45 years old.

According to the study, respondents chose to add 'a brand-new coffee machine' to the office before a defibrillator, and would rather be entitled to free breakfast and snacks, or splurge on unlimited Uber rides to and from the office, before investing in a item which can save a life.

St John Ambulance's Gordon Botwright said it wasn't a lack of compassion from respondents that saw them ranking trivial items over advanced health technology,\ rather a lack of knowledge.

"When made aware of the importance of a defibrillation during sudden cardiac arrest, 88 per cent of Australians said they wished their work invested in a defibrillator before any other office essential," he said.

Mr Botwright said the study revealed an alarmingly high number of Australian workplaces don't currently have a defibrillator. In response, St John Ambulance is launching a new defib that can operate up to 420 shocks on one single battery.

Mr Botwright said having a defibrillator accessible can be a matter of life or death and it should be a necessity in any workplace.

"Paramedics don't always make it in time for a sudden cardiac arrest emergency and lives are many times saved by those brave enough to use a defibrillator, often for the first time," he said.

"Sadly, according to recent reports, only four per cent of bystanders apply defibrillation in an emergency and far too many Australians, who could have survived, lose their lives.

"It is our promise at St John Ambulance to do everything in our power to improve this number and we have set ourselves a bold goal to increase bystander use of defibrillators to 50 per cent nationwide by 2025.

"The new defibrillators are simple to use, powerful and will give more people the chance to act in an emergency."

James Finlayson Smith - who used a defibrillator to save a woman's life when a she suddenly collapsed outside the Scienceworks Museum in Melbourne - said his quick action was the result of previous training.

''The paramedics told me if I hadn't applied a defibrillator, the woman would not have survived and I am so glad that I was able to give my everything and make sure she had a second chance at life and that her grandchildren got to spend some more time with their grandmother," he said.

''Without proper first aid training and a defibrillator handy, I wouldn't have felt confident or even had the chance to save the woman. I can't imagine the trauma this would have caused the woman's family and myself."

Last year a defibrillator was installed in the Katherine Visitor Information Centre.

St John NT aims to register 1000 defibs across the Territory by the end of 2021 in a bid to increase survival rates of visitors and Territorians.

Currently more than 30,000 Australians suffer from a sudden cardiac arrest and as few as 1 in 10 people will survive a sudden cardiac arrest.

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