13/02/2018

SECOND EDITION OF HEARTBEATS THAT ADD UP SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED: 100,000 KILOMETERS COVERED AND 30 NEW DEFIBRILLATORS

One of the devices installed in Pamplona thanks to the first edition saved the life of a citizen who had suffered a cardiac arrest

The 30 new defibrillators will be installed shortly in the five Autonomous Communities that have contributed more kilometers: Andalusia, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, and Navarre

In the first edition, open to physicians and pharmacists only, “Heartbeats that add up” covered 70,000 kilometers and installed 20 devices in 6 Autonomous Communities: Andalusia, Asturias, Castilla León, Extremadura, Navarre, and the Basque Country

“Heartbeats that add up” has fulfilled its main purpose: saving lives. One of the defibrillators installed in Pamplona thanks to the first edition recently contributed to save the life of a citizen who had suffered a cardiac arrest. Now, this virtual solidarity race promoted by ESTEVE and the Asociación España Salud has met the challenge posed four months ago in its second edition: to walk, run, swim or cycle 100,000 kilometers to install 30 new defibrillators and continue to save lives.

These 30 new devices will be installed shortly in the five Autonomous Communities that have covered and donated more kilometers thanks to the participation of the people who registered at www.latidosquesuman.com and joined the initiative through apps such as Google FIT, Runtastgic, Fitbit, Apple Salud, RunKeeper or Dailymile. Specifically, the defibrillators will be installed in Andalusia (Cádiz and Córdoba), Extremadura (Caceres), Galicia (Santiago de Compostela), La Rioja (Logroño), and Navarre (Pamplona).

In the first edition, open to physicians and pharmacists only, 70,000 kilometers were covered and 20 defibrillators were installed in the 6 communities that contributed more kilometers: Andalusia, Asturias, Castilla León, Extremadura, Navarre, and the Basque Country. In these two editions combined, “Heartbeats that add up” will have installed a total of 50 defibrillators in eight Autonomous Communities (Andalusia, Asturias, Castilla León, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Navarre, and the Basque Country), thus increasing the number of devices available in our country and contributing to reduce the nearly 40,000 deaths due to cardiac arrest in Spain every year.

Particularly in crowded places such as squares, schools or sport facilities, “the purpose is that, if someone suffers a cardiac arrest, a public access defibrillator is available nearby. Indeed, the chances of surviving a sudden death episode decrease 10% with each passing minute”, ESTEVE's CSR Responsible Mireia Marimon explains.


Spain has 1 defibrillator for every 59,000 inhabitants (1) -around 10,000 as compared to 100,000 in France and 50,000 in the United Kingdom- and ranks worst in the EU. More than 4,500 lives would be saved every year if a defibrillator and staff minimally trained in resuscitation were available beside every fire extinguisher (1).

1 According to Asociación España Salud www.españasalud.org