South West Ambulance Service launches app to attend heart incidents
Trained members of the public will be alerted to incidents in real time
Last updated 6th Jun 2025
The South Western Ambulance Service has launched a new app to help deal with cardiac arrests in the region.
In the app, named GoodSAM, members of the public who are trained in CPR and life-saving techniques will be alerted to incidents in the area of people suffering from cardiac problems.
The app will pick up any local alerts within 500 meters of the person and they can decide to respond to the incident, helping to keep the patient alive while the ambulance reaches the scene.
GoodSAM - standing for Good Smartphone Activated Medics - launched on Monday (June 2nd), with 2,000 responders already using the app to be dispatched to local incidents.
Anyone who holds a valid Basic Life Support qualification can register to join the network, the force added. This can include nurses, doctors, volunteer doctor or a trained member of the public.
According to the service, any trained member of the public will not need to carry any equipment - only to cut down the time until CPR is started, helping to potentially save lives.
Speaking on the launch, Jane Whichello from the South Western Ambulance Service, hailed the expansion of the scheme as a "significant step" to help save lives.
"Time is critical when somebody has a cardiac arrest, and the earlier good quality CPR begins, the better the chance of survival," she said.
“By including trained public responders in our GoodSAM network, we hope to strengthen the Chain of Survival which begins with early recognition of a cardiac arrest, and early, good quality, CPR.
"The Resuscitation Council UK has found that around 80% of cardiac arrests take place in the home. By registering with this app, members of the public trained in CPR would be alerted to neighbours and any cardiac arrest call within 500 metres.
"Although the proportion of cardiac arrests receiving bystander CPR is high in the South West – around 80% - its effectiveness could often be improved by trained individuals alerted through GoodSAM."