Oban rescue team receives new defib
A new lightweight defibrillator costing £2,300 has been donated to Oban Mountain Rescue Team by the Argyll Beats Cardiovascular Disease (ABCD) charity.
‘We hope we do not have to use it, but having it very close to hand means it could save a life,’ said the rescue crew’s medical officer Stuart Shaw. ‘It could be on the mountain, it could be at events - you just have it when you need it.
‘It has been one of our busiest years in the last decade,’ added team chairman Gordon Binnie: ‘There are a lot more people going outdoors after lockdown.’
Dampness eventually meant the end for the rescue team’s old portable defibrillator, also donated by ABCD 13 years ago. Since its inception in 2000, the ABCD Trust has raised more than £250,000 and has spent in the region of £200,000 on 190 projects in Mull, Islay, Lochgilphead, Campbeltown.
‘This past 18 months or so have been very difficult for us to do our usual activities, including fundraising,’ said ABCD secretary Andy Henderson, ‘but we are now gradually getting back to normal with this presentation to the Oban Mountain Rescue group. Our next fundraising will be our Christmas raffle which is well supported by many Oban businesses, who donate the prizes.’
In the same week, Highlands and Islands MSP Jamie Halcro Johnston encouraged people and organisations who have defibrillators in their communities to ensure they are registered with a new a UKwide national defibrillator network.
The Circuit integrates with ambulance dispatch centres to direct bystanders to the nearest defibrillator in case of a cardiac arrest, reducing the time it takes those needing defibrillation to start receiving treatment.
The campaign to register defibrillators is being supported by the British Heart Foundation, in partnership with the Resuscitation Council UK and the Scottish Ambulance Service.
Mr Halcro Johnston said: ‘Only one in 10 people currently survive an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in the UK, but we know that accessing a defibrillator can greatly improve the chances of survival.
‘Unfortunately, the majority of defibrillators are not known to the ambulance service which can mean that in an emergency people are not directed to their nearest device.
‘However, registering your defibrillator with The Circuit should help the ambulance service direct people to their nearest defibrillator more quickly in the event of someone suffering a cardiac arrest. That could save lives.
‘And this could be particularly significant in the Highlands and Islands given the potential distances emergency services have to cover to attend to someone who needs help.’