The Friends of St Vincent's Hospital volunteer group deserves recognition after raising and funding $280,000 worth of defibrillators to save lives inside and outside the hospital in East Lismore.

"What gives us satisfaction is that these defibrillators will not only benefit those within the hospital walls, but also the people surrounding it. We can’t afford to lose anyone, and our job is to provide the best care possible,” said Ann Spillane, President of The Friends of St Vincent’s Hospital. 

St Vincent's Hospital released a statement thanking the Friends volunteer group, "It’s great to see the monies raised by the Friends going towards the purchase of clinical equipment that will benefit the hospital and the entire community for years to come."

"This generous donation goes hand in hand with our goal to constantly improve staff competency levels in the area of Advanced Life Support."

St Vincent's board Chairman, Damian Chapelle, accepted the donations of the top-of-the-line devices on behalf of the hospital. The new defibrillators now means St Vincent's has 10 'Lifepack35' clinical use defibrillators with Advanced Life Support (ALS) capability, as well as several smaller 'LifepackCR2' portable AED devices for placement around the campus.

To date, the Friend’s of St Vincent’s Hospital volunteer group has raised over $2.5 million in donations that has provided needed infrastructure. This is off the back of the businesses run by the Friends, namely the Friends Coffee Lounge, Tea Rooms, and Child Day Care Centre.

The volunteer group numbers are around 10-15 regulars. This has been slowly declining over the years, and they are in need of some new members. I you have time and are interested to find out more information, click St Vincent's Lismore | volunteer.