Community groups in Scotland are being urged to apply for a free lifesaving defibrillator from the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
The BHF says they’re particularly eager to receive applications from community groups at Irvine Castlepark South, area in Irvine, the Udston area in Hamilton, Govanhill, Carnwadric, Drumchapel, Hutchesontown and Milton West areas in Glasgow as well as Langlees area in Falkirk.
Irvine Castlepark South has been highlighted as one of the priority spots, with the nearest defibrillator being 964m or 11 minutes 3 seconds away.
Every minute without CPR and defibrillation after a cardiac arrest can reduce the chance of survival by up to 10 per cent. There are around 3200 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests each year in Scotland, but less than one in ten people survive.
This year the BHF relaunched its Community Defibrillator Funding Programme and there are over 320 defibrillator packages available to communities, to increase the chance of survival from a cardiac arrest.
The BHF has a long history of funding public access defibrillators for communities: the heart charity’s Nation of Lifesavers scheme has helped install nearly 3,500 devices in the UK since 2014.
There are over 96,000 defibrillators registered on The Circuit but they are not evenly distributed. Data from The Circuit has shown that deprived communities need better support to help improve response times to an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The charity fears that gaps in the map of defibrillators are putting lives at risk.
The BHF hope the programme will help reduce these defibrillator gaps and improve survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests.
Local areas awarded one of these defibrillators will be provided with a defibrillator and cabinet, and installation costs will be covered where required. Communities awarded a defibrillator can order future replacement parts free of charge when they expire or are used in a rescue.
The charity will ensure that each defibrillator will also be registered on The Circuit so ambulance services can direct bystanders to the nearest available defibrillator in the event of a cardiac arrest.
David McColgan, Head of the British Heart Foundation Scotland, said: “When someone has a cardiac arrest, every second counts – early access to a defibrillator is vital to give someone the best chance of survival.
“Although we have made progress, there are still too many communities that lack quick and easy access to a defibrillator. With the reopening of this fund, more communities will now have access to a defibrillator that can save lives.”
Communities are invited to apply for their free defibrillator on the BHF website here.
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