Black cabs drivers have been given defibrillators by the London Ambulance Service (LAS) to help Londoners who suffer cardiac arrest.

This is an attempt to reduce the number of deaths by cardiac arrest. Every minute a patient waits for help their chances of survival reduces by 10%. The LAS trained drivers to perform CPR chest compressions and has also fitted their vehicles with the defibrillators.

The drivers will be alerted by GoodSAM app to respond to emergencies and will be able to provide immediate help before an ambulance arrives.

Defibrillators detect if patient’s heart is in a “shockable rhythm”, and delivers an electric charge. The devices reduces death cases by cardiac arrest by 50%.

Despite the provision of about 5,000 defibrillators around London, the machines are used less than 100 times a year.  The app will help trained “first responders” to provide necessary medical attention.

This is part of a six-month pilot scheme involving thirty Licensed Taxi Drivers’ Association drivers.

Garrett Emmerson, LAS chief executive said, “The idea is to test the benefits of having a defib in the cab, as opposed to just using the public access ones. If it’s successful, the idea would be to roll it out. Taxi drivers are a knowledgeable group of people. They can find themselves in a situation where they are closer to patients than we are.

Paul Tippett, 51, is a cabbie who is part of the training. He was inspired after a woman collapsed and he felt powerless; an incident that led him to purchase a defibrillator. A few months prior to this training, he helped resuscitate a patient.

He told the Evening Standard, “He had an underlying heart condition that made his heart stop for a few seconds. The defibrillator helped his heart go back into its natural rhythm. The absolutely wonderful news is that he is still with us today.”