St John Ambulance: Helpless

BBH London has teamed up with Blink Productions director Benito Montorio to strike an emotional chord with a hard-hitting film demonstrating the importance of first aid. With the startling fact that up to 140,000 people die each year (as many as that killed by cancer) in situations where first aid could've saved their lives, the commercial underlines a shocking truth.

The piece follows the journey of a man who is diagnosed with cancer and, after undergoing treatment, survives only to die as a result of choking at a family gathering because no one knew the basic first aid procedure that could have helped save his life.

Scott Jacobson, St John Ambulance’s director of marketing, communications and fundraising, says: “we wanted this campaign to really stun people with how needless it is for anyone to die in a situation where the most basic first aid might have saved them.”

“People know that cancer is a very serious illness and take steps to prevent it and look after loved ones who are stricken with it,” he adds, “so we hope that the tragedy of someone surviving cancer but then dying because he needed first aid and didn’t get it will raise awareness that a lack of first aid is just as life-threatening and will motivate people to text in for a free first aid guide.”

Matt Doman and Ian Heartfield, creative directors at BBH conclude: “we all know that cancer claims thousands of lives every year. The fact that the same number of lives could be lost because people don't know basic first aid is truly shocking. Hopefully the emotional impact of this film will make people want to learn the first aid skills that could be the difference between life and death.”

The campaign was launched with a free guide to saving lives available at St John Ambulance and you can join the conversation with the #helpless hashtag.