The Federal Government has begun Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation, Basic Life Support and Automated External Defibrillator training for staff of the Federal Ministry of Health.
The initiative is aimed at strengthening emergency response capacity to incidents such as cardiac arrest.
The exercise is being conducted with support from the Nigerian Cardiac Society and the Society for Public Health and Social Development.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, inaugurated the exercise on Thursday in Abuja.
Salako said the initiative was part of the resolutions reached at the last National Council on Health meeting.
He said the council recognised sudden cardiac arrest as a public health emergency and emphasised the urgent need to build life-saving capacity beyond hospital walls.
“Today’s event is therefore not just a training exercise; it is a deliberate policy action aimed at saving lives.
“Sudden cardiac arrest can occur anywhere—at home, in offices, at public gatherings, or within institutions such as ours.
“When it happens, every second counts. The difference between life and death often lies in the presence of a trained first responder who can promptly recognise the emergency, initiate CPR, and deploy an AED where available.
“By equipping our staff with these essential skills, the ministry is strengthening emergency preparedness within the workplace while reinforcing its leadership role in promoting patient safety, emergency response, and public health resilience.”
He said the initiative also aligned with the ministry’s commitment to preventive healthcare, occupational safety and quality service delivery.
According to him, the training would be cascaded to communities nationwide to equip citizens with the skills to recognise sudden cardiac arrest, initiate CPR promptly and use an AED where available.
“This initiative will not stop within the walls of the Federal Ministry of Health. It is our intention that the knowledge and skills acquired here today will be cascaded to communities across the country.
“We envision a Nigeria where citizens are empowered to recognise sudden cardiac arrest, initiate CPR promptly, and use an AED where available.
“By extending this training beyond government offices into communities, schools, workplaces and public spaces, we are building a nationwide network of first responders and strengthening community resilience to medical emergencies,” he said.
The minister expressed appreciation to the NCS and other partners for their expertise, time and resources in supporting the training aimed at advancing health outcomes and building a safer society.
Also speaking, Dr Olanrewaju Olatunji, Deputy Director, Trauma Emergency Disaster Response Programme, Hospital Services Department, Federal Ministry of Health, emphasised the need for every individual to learn CPR, BLS and AED skills to save lives.
“It is important for every person to know how to perform CPR; at least know what to do in the first step before calling for rescue.
“That involves that once someone collapses or slumps, the first thing is to check the environment to see if it is safe.
“If the environment is safe and you call the person’s name, if you know the person, then you commence the process of CPR.
“It is very significant, because the first four minutes are very important in preventing deprivation of oxygen to the brain. Once the brain is deprived of oxygen, the person might remain vegetative or eventually die,” he said.
According to him, this is why it is important to commence CPR immediately.
“It is important for everybody, whether you are a health worker or not, to know how to perform CPR,” he said.
Olatunji further said that slumping could be due to neurological, cardiovascular or endocrine causes, as well as comorbid conditions such as hypertension, haemorrhaging and ischaemic stroke, among others.
The President of the NCS, Prof. Augustine Odili, said the society was developing training modules, standardisation and quality assurance measures, as well as certification processes to support CPR, BLS and AED training.
Odili, who is also a Consultant Cardiologist at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, said many Nigerians trained in CPR currently rely on American Heart Association certification.
“What NCS is doing is to develop a certification process. We need to develop protocols. So part of what we launched today is the protocol for installation and maintenance of public access defibrillators,” he said.
He attributed most cases of cardiac arrest to cardiovascular diseases affecting the heart, such as hypertension, diabetes, cigarette smoking and sedentary lifestyle, which he described as major risk factors.
(NAN)
Leave a comment