Under-23s join local children to support Restart a Heart Day 2019

Today, the Club supported Restart a Heart Day, a global initiative that aims to raise awareness of the importance of learning how to perform CPR.

Under-23 players Jubril Okedina, Maurizio Pochettino and Maximus Tainio joined North Middlesex University Hospital’s resuscitation team and local primary school children to learn the skills needed to save someone’s life following a cardiac arrest.

Students from St Edmund’s Catholic Primary School, members of the public and hospital staff came together to practice the required steps to restarting a heart. These ranged from checking breathing and performing ‘mouth-to-mouth’ rescue breaths on life-sized models, to heart massage and how to use a defibrillator.

By helping people gain practical experience of CPR, the initiative strives to improve survival rates for those who have suffered a cardiac arrest, which are currently less than one in 10.

Event organiser and resuscitation practitioner, Belinda Okyere, said: “It was great to welcome Jubril, Maurizio and Max to North Mid for our annual Restart a Heart Day event and get them involved with the CPR drills alongside pupils from St Edmund’s Catholic Primary School.

“Their presence and interaction with the kids was greatly appreciated and will have certainly contributed towards some long-lasting memories. We thank them and the Club for spending time with us and hope that they also learnt some valuable, lifesaving skills during their visit.”

Maurizio said: “It was fantastic to be here with the children as they learnt how to save a life. These skills are so important as you never know when you’ll need to use them.”

For more information about Restart a Heart Day, visit the St John Ambulance, British Heart Foundation and Resuscitation Council UK websites.