Call 112, find the AED, save a life | Michael Linnerer

Someone collapses, does not respond and is not breathing normally. In that moment the first minutes decide everything. The emergency services are fast, but they are not always there at once – and every minute without help lowers the chances. What helps then are the people on the spot. That can be you.

Collapsed and not responding? Call 112 right away!

The emergency number is free and works everywhere in the EU. Call 112 first, turn on the speaker and start chest compressions immediately. The dispatcher stays on the line and helps you.

Call 112 Open the AED map

Check – Call – Press

Check: Does the person not respond when you speak to them and gently shake their shoulders, and are they not breathing or only gasping? Then treat it as a cardiac arrest. When in doubt, help rather than wait.
Call: Dial 112 and give the location. Ask a second person to fetch a defibrillator if there is one nearby.
Press: Place the heel of your hand on the centre of the chest, the other hand on top. Then press hard and fast, about 100 to 120 times a minute and 5 to 6 centimetres deep. Do not stop until the emergency services take over or the defibrillator is ready.

It feels unusually forceful, but that is right. The worst thing you can do wrong is nothing.

The defibrillator (AED) guides you

A defibrillator is built for lay people. You switch it on, stick the pads on as shown in the pictures and follow the voice prompts. The device decides by itself whether a shock is needed and only delivers one then. You cannot do anything wrong, and it does not harm anyone who does not need it.

Know where it hangs

In an emergency there is no time to search. So here is my appeal: take a moment now to find out where the nearest defibrillator is and remember one or two locations: near your home, at work, at your club.

For this I have created a map of defibrillators in Raubling and the surrounding area with a description of each location and directions. It covers 15 kilometres around the town hall, so commuters can find something too, for example in Rosenheim, Kolbermoor, Bad Aibling or Brannenburg. The data comes from OpenStreetMap and is updated every night.

Is an AED missing on the map? The list is not complete, because many devices in companies, club houses or practices have not been entered yet. If you know one that is missing, please add it yourself on OpenStreetMap. How to do it is explained step by step on the AED page, and new entries show up on my map by the next day at the latest. The more complete OpenStreetMap is, the more likely someone finds the nearest AED in an emergency – not only on this page, but in every app that uses this data.

Please share this post with family, neighbours and your club. Everyone who knows what to do raises the chance that a person survives.

This post is no substitute for a first-aid course. Anyone who has practised the steps once is much more confident in an emergency. Courses are offered by aid organisations and emergency services, among others.