The Federal Government has committed to empowering citizens to recognize sudden cardiac arrest and initiate Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) promptly.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, made the commitment on Thursday in Abuja during the inauguration of Basic Life Support (BLS), Walk-In CPR, and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) training.
According to him, by extending the training beyond government offices into communities, schools, workplaces, and public spaces, the ministry is building a nationwide network of first responders and strengthening community resilience to medical emergencies.
“We need to put something together that can help us work closely with what Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) are delivering—the framework, the training modules, the certification process.
“We should find a way to have a stamp of government authority on it, so that it can be easier and we can create better opportunities for Nigerians to have access to this training.
“This issue has already been discussed at the Federal Executive Council, so it’s in line with our responsibility at the ministry to initiate ways to get other offices and staff trained,” he said.
The minister urged participants to remain fully engaged, treat the training with utmost seriousness, and regard themselves as ambassadors of life-saving knowledge in the ministry, their households, and the wider community.
“It is my expectation that this programme will be sustained, expanded, and institutionalized, contributing to a culture where immediate response to medical emergencies becomes second nature to all,” Salako said.
Also speaking, the General Secretary of the Nigerian Society of Anaesthetists (NSA), Dr Morayo Salawu, said the main focus was Basic Life Support, noting that many people who require it often slump or collapse at home.
“More than 50 per cent of such cases result in death outside hospital settings.
“So as NSA, our project is to go to all corners of Nigeria to teach people how to conduct CPR.
“We want to teach students, market men, workers, and everyone—not just health workers,” she said.
According to her, the goal is for people to identify when someone needs CPR and know exactly what to do.
“Knowing what to do can save a life, as the brain has less than four minutes before permanent damage occurs,” Salawu said.
Other NGOs involved in the initiative include the Nigerian Cardiac Society and the Cardiac Foundation.
