Buying Your First Defibrillator? Here’s What’s Included, What You’ll Need and How to Maintain it

If you’ve decided to purchase a defibrillator (Automated External Defibrillator or AED) for your school, workplace, leisure facility, hotel, community building, you probably know what one is but might not know exactly what you need. Choosing a defibrillator for the first time can feel like a minefield and knowing where to keep it, how to use it and how to maintain it is hard to know if you’ve never bought one before.

At Defib4Life, our mission is to empower organisations nationwide with the tools and knowledge needed for creating safer environments and saving lives. To ensure as many people as possible are equipped with the knowledge they need to not only buy a defibrillator but ensure it’s always rescue ready, we have compiled this complete guide to help you. You’ll find out more about what you should consider before buying, what’s included, what you’ll need and how to maintain your defibrillator.

What Should You Consider Before Buying Your Defibrillator?

Buying a defibrillator is the first step towards protecting your workplace, school or community when cardiac arrest strikes. However, buying the defibrillator is only one step, with so many models and options available, there are a number of factors to consider before you make your final purchase to ensure that your defibrillator saves a life when it’s needed.

1.      Where Will the Defibrillator be Stored and Who Will Need Access?

The first factor to consider is where your AED will be located. If it’s going to be stored indoors such as in an office, gym or reception area, you’ll just need a cabinet or wall bracket to keep it safe and visible. However, if the defibrillator is going to be kept outside, you will need a secure, weather-protected cabinet that will protect your AED from extreme temperatures and ensure that it remains rescue ready.

This decision will have an impact on the cost of your defibrillator so should be considered first so you can ensure you have the right budget for everything you need.

Wherever you decide to put your defibrillator, it should be easy to see and reach quickly in an emergency and be accesible to everyone (not locked away in a drawer or cupboard!)

2.      Who will use the defibrillator

While modern defibrillators are designed to be used by anyone, whether trained or untrained, confidence levels can still vary and knowledge of what a defibrillator is and how it works isn’t common knowledge within an organisation unless everyone has received training.

If your AED is likely to be used by staff, volunteers or the general public, a fully automatic AED is the best option because it will deliver a shock automatically when needed, reducing user hesitation and speeding up treatment time.

If you have trained first aiders on-site, a semi-automatic defibrillator provides slightly more control because a button needs to be pressed in order to deliver the shock when prompted.

Both types of defibrillators provide clear voice and visual instructions, so every type is easy to operate in an emergency. Learn more in our blog: Automatic vs semi-automatic defibrillators: which one is right for your needs?

3.      Regulations and legal considerations

The law in the UK does not require organisations to have a defibrillator. However, failure to provide one or to maintain an existing one could lead to negligence claims if your defibrillator failed when it was needed during a cardiac arrest. This is why it’s so important to ensure your defibrillator is always maintained and remains rescue ready. We’ll cover more on maintenance later in this blog.

4.      Budget and on-going costs

When buying a defibrillator, we recommend factoring both the initial cost of purchasing and installing the defibrillator and the cost of ongoing upkeep. Remember that pads and batteries will need to be replaced every 2-5 years so ensure these are factored into your yearly budgets. Different models come with varying lifespans so choose a device with longer lifespans to reduce ongoing costs.

What’s Included When You Buy a Defibrillator?

When buying a defibrillator for the first time, you’ll likely have no idea what’s included in the box! Here’s what you’ll usually get when you buy a defibrillator:

• The AED itself
• A set of pads. If the device can be used on both adults and children, you will often be provided with a set of adult and child pads. This varies by device so check this before you buy
• A battery
• A carry case to protect the defibrillator
• An instruction manual or quick start guide
• A full rescue ready kit including scissors, gloves, wipes and a razor. Again, this will depend on the model you buy so always check before purchasing.

If you buy a bundle, this will also come with a cabinet and everything you need to install your AED and cabinet.

What Will You Need?

The defibrillator comes with all the basics you need for a quick set up. But, to ensure your defibrillator is fully rescue ready, we also recommend considering the following.

• A cabinet or wall bracket: Recognising the need for a defibrillator and purchasing one is a great step towards keeping your workplace or community safe. However, it’s more than just a box ticking exercise. Buying the AED and putting it in a locked drawer in someone’s office is going to slow responders down in an emergency. Using a wall bracket or cabinet to keep your defibrillator will not only ensure it’s easy to find and visible in an emergency, but it will also prevent it from being lost, stolen or damaged too. You can buy locked and unlocked cabinets as well as heated cabinets, depending on where you intend to keep your AED.
• Replacement pads and battery: Although defibrillators come with pads and a battery, we highly recommend having spares that you store in the same cabinet. This means that if your existing pads or battery fail in an emergency for any reason, you’ve got spares that will still provide treatment. You’ll also need spare pads and a battery if your existing ones expire. They tend to have a shelf life of 2-5 years so check your device for this and set reminders to replace them. For more information on pads and batteries, read our blogs: Why defibrillator pads expire and when should I replace the batteries in my defibrillator?
• Rescue Ready kit: A ready kit contains everything you need prior to placing pads on the patient and to assist with CPR. Having this kit on-hand can save precious seconds in an emergency.
• Signage:  A cabinet is usually a great indicator that a defibrillator is available but signage (especially in areas where the public might use the AED) is important for letting responders know where you AED is and being able to locate it quickly in an emergency.
• Training: AEDs are designed to be used by anyone, whether trained or untrained. However, if you’re installing one in your school or workplace, training can help staff feel confident in what an AED is and how they use it which can have a huge help in a stressful, high-pressure situation.
• Register with The Circuit: Registering your defibrillator with The Circuit allows ambulance services to let bystanders know where your device is in an emergency. Knowing an AED is nearby can save precious time and can be the difference between life and death.

When you buy a defibrillator, you don’t have to have all of these things but they can help to save time in an emergency, ensuring that your defibrillator is easy to find, ready for use, working and that everyone in your organisation feels confident in using it.

Understanding Defibrillator Maintenance

Ensuring your defibrillator is ready for use at all times is part of AED ownership. Maintenance is simple if you know what to look out for. Regular checks, replacements and basic awareness will ensure your AED is always in working order when it’s most needed.

Here’s what’s involved with defibrillator maintenance:

Regular visual checks

Keep an eye on your defibrillator to ensure it’s always in working order. Most modern defibrillators perform daily, weekly or monthly self-tests to confirm they’re ready for use. This means they will tell you if there if a problem that needs fixing or not. A status indicator light will let you know this information so check your manual to see how your device performs these checks. Having your AED displayed in a cabinet with a transparent window can make these checks much easier.

Expiry dates

Pads and batteries expire every 2-5 years so will need to be replaced periodically. Both will be less effective after reaching their expiry date so having up-to-date pads and batteries is essential to ensure your defibrillator works in an emergency.

Once your defibrillator has been used

Did you know that your defibrillator pads will need to be replaced once they’ve been used? Having a spare set of pads means you can install them while your defibrillator is being stored and you can buy a new set to keep as spares.

Maintenance packages

Regular checks of your defibrillator and cabinet should be carried out to ensure it’s working. Having a dedicated person within an organisation to do this can be tricky. At Defib4Life, we provide service packages to ensure your defibrillator is always rescue ready.

If you’d like to know more about maintaining your defibrillator, take a look at our blog: How to maintain and test your defibrillator for maximum safety.

Common Questions from First-Time Defibrillator Buyers

Do I need training to use a defibrillator?

No, you do not need any formal training to use a defibrillator. Modern defibrillators are designed for anyone to use and provide clear voice and visual instructions, telling you exactly what to do in an emergency.

However, basic AED and CPR training can be beneficial to help responders feel more confident, reduce hesitation and save time in an emergency.

How often should I check my defibrillator?

AEDs perform their own self-checks daily, weekly and monthly but it’s still recommended that you carry out a quick visual check weekly and a more thorough check monthly so you know your defibrillator is working. You never know when it might be needed.

What’s the lifespan of a defibrillator?

With proper care and depending on the model you choose; a defibrillator can last up to 8-10 years with the proper care. Consumables such as pads and batteries will need to be replaced every 2-5 years but the device itself will last for a long time.

What happens if I use my defibrillator? Does it need to be replaced?

If your defibrillator is used, it will need to be serviced and restocked immediately. You’ll need to replace the used pads, check and, if necessary, replace the pads, run a manual self-test, clean the unit and update your maintenance record.

Buying Your First Defibrillator and Keeping it Rescue Ready

Buying your first defibrillator is a great first step towards protecting your workplace, school or community. However, it’s not just about buying and installing it. Making sure you perform regular checks to keep it rescue ready is just as important as the initial purchase.

At Defib4Life, we want to make this easy for as many organisations as possible. From helping you choose the right defibrillator to providing maintenance packages, expiry reminders and staff training, we’ll support you through every stage of ownership. We want to help you ensure your defibrillator is ready to save a life when every second counts.

If you’d like expert guidance on finding the best AED for your organisation or help with maintenance, please contact our team today or take a look at our full range of defibrillators and accessories.