A Notice of Motion was moved last night at the Orange Council Meeting to support the rollout of the LifeVac device to schools, daycare centers, and sporting clubs in NSW. The motion was supported by the parents of Decklan Hayward and Imogen Lennon who both lost their children due to choking within months of each other. Deaths that could likely have been prevented with the LifeVac device. The submission to the council can be read on the link below. If passed, the Council will commit to:
- Advocate for the supply and introduction of Life Vac devices in all NSW Schools/ Childcare Centres by lobbying our Local and State members for funding for the Life Vac Devices.
- Encourage all local sporting clubs to consider including them as a must-have in addition to a defibrillator as part of their first aid toolkit.
- Write to Prue Car, Deputy Premier, Minister for Education and Early Learning in support of this initiative.
The support of these brave parents and the Council in advocating with Minister Car is vital to force the Minister and the Education Department to reconsider their very poor and unevidenced decision and appropriately address the issue of choking resulting in untimely deaths in NSW schools, particularly in rural areas. These two indigenous lives ended suddenly and tragically and the Minister and the NSW Education Department have been bureaucratic and dispassionate.