Following a student campaign in Vancouver, B.C.'s Education Minister Lisa Beare has directed staff to review the deployment of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) throughout the public education system. The campaign was launched after a student at Point Grey Secondary School died of a cardiac event in 2022. While students have raised funds and secured donations for AEDs, the Vancouver School Board has declined to install them, citing concerns about costs and equitable distribution.
On Friday, Lisa Beare told Global News she has directed staff to review how to deploy automated external defibrillators throughout the public education system.Story continues below advertisement
“We have 90 per cent of districts who do CPR training and a number of those have AEDs. I’ve asked my team to look at where the gaps are so we can fill that gap.” Grade 11 student Tobias Zhang began the campaign after one of his friends died of a cardiac event in 2022. “We have these life-saving devices on hand and if something happens in the school … and it wasn’t there it would just make me feel defeated,” he told Global News on Friday.They have since bought a second AED and supplier Iridia Medical — the Vancouver company that led B.C.’s first public access AED program, has donated five more, all of which are still sitting unused.“We would estimate about 400 thousand dollars over the span of 10 years,” said Katie Hyland with Iridia Medical.
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