Every year in Ireland, thousands of people die from cardiac arrest. However some of these lives could be saved if CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) was carried out, the Irish Heart Foundation (IHF) has said.

It has launched a new awareness campaign, which aims to show people just how straightforward it is to perform CPR.

CPR is a simple skill that involves pushing hard and fast on the chest of someone in cardiac arrest.

Cardiac arrest refers to the sudden loss of function of the heart. It occurs when there is an abrupt disturbance in the heart's rhythm, causing the heart to stop beating. A person whose heart has stopped beating will fall unconscious and stop breathing normally. If they do not get immediate medical assistance, sudden cardiac death will follow.

An estimated 13 people die of cardiac arrest every day in Ireland - almost 5,000 annually - and around 70% of these deaths occur in the home in front of a loved one.

"If someone you love suffers a cardiac arrest, you could be their best chance of survival," the IHF said.

It usually carries out public CPR training programmes, but these have had to be cancelled this year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

To counter this, it has launched this latest campaign, which includes a new video featuring 'Manny Quinn' - the CPR training manikin. It is less than a minute long, but explains the key steps of CPR. It can be viewed here.

The new campaign was launched on Restart a Heart Day (October 16), an international day of CPR awareness.

For more information on CPR, click here.