Justin Edinburgh charity aims to increase number of people trained in CPR on #RestartAHeartDay
Charlie Edinburgh: "If you know CPR, you can be a hero to somebody and their family. I was naïve about how much of silent killer this is and it's only when something happens to you that you notice"
Friday 16 October 2020 09:42, UK
A charity launched in honour of the late Justin Edinburgh hopes to increase the number of people trained in CPR.
The JE3 Foundation was established by the family of the former Tottenham defender and Leyton Orient manager, and aims to support UK heart health charities and to campaign for legislative change - Justin's Law - to make it compulsory for all health, fitness and sports facilities to be equipped with a Public Access Defibrillator (PAD).
On Friday, which is #RestartAHeartDay, they launch a campaign alongside the Resuscitation Council UK aimed at encouraging more people to train for CPR, with many courses now available online.
"We want to engage as many people as possible to learn from these stories that they could make the difference between life and death," said Justin Edinburgh's son Charlie.
"If you know CPR, you can be a hero to somebody and their family. I was naïve about how much of silent killer this is and it's only when something happens to you that you notice.
"The more people that are trained in this, the better it will be for the country and there is no better time to learn it than now."
He added: "It could easily be rolled out into the school curriculum. Seattle, for example, has a very high survival rate for heart issues and it's taught in schools there.
"Education is so important. I've been for heart scans since dad died and my advice to everyone would be to go and get yourself checked. That way if there is a problem you can do something about it."
The JE3 Foundation has already provided three defibrillators but Charlie Edinburgh feels they should be compulsory in all places of exercise after his father suffered a cardiac arrest while working out in a gym.
"I look at them as being like seatbelts - they weren't legal at one point and they're there in case something very bad happens," he said.
"I think it's important to have them at any place exercise is happening because you see people pushing themselves to the limit in gyms and they're in there to get themselves in shape."
