Western Isles given 100th defibrillator ...

100th defibrillator celebrations for life-saving trainers and supporters in Stornoway.

A COLLABORATION between Comhairle nan Eilean Siar and the charity Lucky2Bhere has made the Western Isles one of the best protected communities in the UK in terms of life-saving training and equipment.

In a proactive council-led approach, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (Western Isles Council) teamed up with Lucky2Bhere and defibrillator manufacturer Cardiac Science to achieve the feat.

Together they have provided more concentrated access to defibrillators and comprehensive Emergency Life Support training (ELS) than anywhere else in the UK.

The Western Isles took delivery of its 100th defibrillator last week at the Cabarfeidh Hotel in Stornoway.

ELS training, including how to operate a defibrillator, is now provided routinely by Lucky2BHere volunteers in all 24 secondary and primary schools across the Western Isles as part of the curriculum.

Bernard Chisholm, education director for the Western Isles, helped create the framework for change by making defibrillator provision possible and championing the ELS training. Defibrillators are now available 24/7 at every school in the Western Isles, both for school and wider community use, all signposted from local roads.

The proactive approach to life-saving training is widely adopted across Europe, especially in Scandinavian countries, where survival rates after sudden cardiac arrest are as good as one in two. In the UK it is only one in 20.

Councillor Angus Morrison has been instrumental in the campaign both as a councillor and a volunteer trainer and co-ordinator at Lucky2Bhere. He suffered a heart attack himself in 2015 and is well aware of the importance of timely life-saving intervention.

It was his vision to see defibrillators in every community in the Western Isles and the scheme has seen that increase from seven to 100 in less than 18 months.

He said: ‘After my heart attack I wanted to raise awareness of the need to have both easy access to defibrillators and the necessary life-saving skills to deal with a sudden cardiac arrest.’

Lucky2Bhere trainers are volunteers all trained according to current Resuscitation Council (UK) guidelines. The free-ofcharge ELS training gives people the knowledge and confidence to provide bystander CPR and defibrillation in an emergency.

A celebration dinner was held at the end of November to mark an extraordinary 18 months of progress in life-saving education and the installation of the 100th defibrillator in the Western Isles.