Hansard

I thank Tom Arthur for the motion, congratulate him on securing this important debate and join him in celebrating Levern Valley Defibrillator Community Partnership. I, too, congratulate Douglas Yates and all the partners involved, including the rotary club, local businesses and the local authority, in the fantastic achievement of raising £25,000 and installing 23 devices, which will literally save the lives of local people.

That project follows on from the successful British Heart Foundation aim of building a nation of lifesavers through its campaign to have cardiopulmonary resuscitation taught in schools across the country. I am pleased to be working with the British Heart Foundation on its next big national campaign, which is to ensure the mandatory registration of defibrillators across the country, so that we can save lives here and be an example to other parts of the United Kingdom and, indeed, the rest of the world.

The issue is so important because, every year in Scotland, there are approximately 9,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. Of those, there are approximately 3,500 cases where resuscitation is attempted. Sadly, in only one in 12 of those cases will the person survive. The use of automated external defibrillators is a big part of improving those numbers. Tom Arthur rightly mentioned my intention to introduce a member’s bill on the mandatory registration of AEDs. I hope to launch a public consultation in due course and that the bill will receive support from members throughout the chamber—and, indeed, from communities throughout the country. I also hope to work alongside the Scottish Ambulance Service, the British Heart Foundation, MSPs and community groups throughout the country so that we can have mandatory registration of defibrillators and direct bystander support to help save lives across Scotland.

Failure to register an AED with the Scottish Ambulance Service can have devastating consequences. Community groups do the hard work and raise the money, and businesses make a commitment and install the AED, but the failure to register AEDs means that when an incident occurs, the Ambulance Service may fail to direct someone to a nearby AED that can be used before the ambulance arrives, which can lead to loss of life. Every second of every minute is crucial, because each minute of delay is found to reduce the probability of survival by 10 per cent.

We know that if we used defibrillators, we could increase the survival rate by as much as 70 per cent. That is why registration is so important. International evidence is clear that registered AEDs are 15 more times likely to be used than unregistered ones and that someone is 70 per cent more likely to survive if defibrillation is used. That is why it is important that we collect data, monitor the use of AEDs and share that information with the Scottish Ambulance Service.

I ask the minister what further steps the Government is taking to ensure that we have mandatory registration of AEDs and encourage more people to register them with the Scottish Ambulance Service, so that we can have that national database and use the fantastic dedication of community organisations and local businesses to help save lives across our country. What resources, if any, is the Government willing to put in to ensure that we have not just a public interest campaign to try to get more people who already have an AED to register it, but identify where the gaps are and encourage people to install AEDs in those places and make them available for public use?

If we have that campaign and the mandatory registration of AEDs, we can save hundreds of lives every year and thousands of lives over a number of years, and Scotland can be an example to the rest of the UK and the rest of the world.

Again, I thank Tom Arthur for bringing forward this very important debate.