Set in the beautiful village of Shipston-on-Stour in Warwickshire, staff at the Shipston Lodge Nursing Home have recently undertaken new choking awareness and response training.

With the significant risk of choking in the elderly the family-run, all-inclusive home installed Dechoker emergency choking equipment before opening in 2019 and have now updated their skills.

Several senior staff and carers recently completed the Train The Trainer course. This allows them to instruct new care and support staff in how to use the life-saving equipment, as well as deliver refresher updates.

A new online (eLearning) course is available in addition to hands-on training using their Choking Charlie manikin, allows staff to practice how to respond in a real and understandably stressful situation where every second counts.

Choking awareness and prevention is often focussed on smaller, younger children which may account for the very few tragic deaths that occur in the UK every year.

In contrast, over 70% of all choking deaths occur in those aged over 65 – largely due to both complications in swallowing and the difficulty in delivering effective treatment.

Dechoker ACD equipment has already saved many dozens of lives in the care sector throughout the UK, helped reduced hospital admissions and keep residents safe.