CHASE donates life-saving equipment to HFJ
THE Heart Foundation of Jamaica (HFJ) on Monday received several pieces of life-saving equipment valued at just over US$17,104 from Culture, Health, Arts, Sports and Education (CHASE) Fund.
The equipment will be used in HFJ’s life-saving screening services and emergency cardiac training programme. Among the items donated were adult and infant mannequins and automated external defibrillators used in the HFJ Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training in communities, as well as ECG machines to boost the foundation’s islandwide screening programmes.
The pieces of equipment were handed over by Paulette Mitchell, project manager at CHASE Fund, who reiterated the role the Fund plays in promoting health care by donating 20 per cent of its budget to the sector each year
Since 2007, CHASE has contributed some J$21 million to HFJ and was also instrumental in the purchase of the foundation’s current location at 28 Beechwood Avenue in Kingston.
Monday’s donation was made in recognition of CPR Week, which began on Sunday and ends today under the theme ‘Staying Alive’.
Executive director of the HFJ, Deborah Chen expressed her gratitude to the organisation for its partnership over the years. She lauded CHASE’s “consistent support which has improved the capabilities of the HFJ to save lives through the early detection and treatment of potentially disabling and fatal conditions”.
Meanwhile, the handing-over ceremony, which happened at CHASE offices in New Kingston, also saw a number of the Fund’s staff being given a crash course in how to administer CPR.
Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Jamaica, incapacitating thousands of people — some of them for life — and hampering national productivity. The prevention of this disease and promotion of heart health care are the main objectives of the HFJ which, for more than 43 years, has been offering screening services islandwide at significantly reduced rates.
The HFJ was established in 1971 by the Lions Club of Kingston in an effort to minimise the incidence of heart-related deaths in Jamaica.
