Life-saving support for Penicuik

It has almost become a cliché to praise medical staff as 'angels' doing an incredibly difficult job for modest pay, but it doesn't make them any less deserving of such high praise.

Penicuik First chairman Michael Graham presents the defibrillator to members of Penicuik Community First Responders.

What about local volunteers giving up their own time to be first at the scene of a medical emergency?

The board of Penicuik First BID was introduced to these wonderful people at a recent meeting and decided to support their crucial work of saving people’s lives.

If you’re around Penicuik and in serious medical trouble, whether it’s a heart attack or any other serious incident, the Penicuik Community First Responders will be the first faces you see – and you’ll be glad you did. Ambulances can take longer to arrive and the crucial intervening minutes can spell the difference between life and death.

Penicuik First was approached by Penicuik Community First Responders to provide funding for a community defibrillator in the town centre and the unanimous decision was made to fund it straight away. The defibrillator is now installed in the John Street precinct and can be used by any member of the public to rescue anybody suffering cardiac arrest (heart attack).

Michael Graham, who owns “The Studio” photography studio in Penicuik town centre, and volunteers as chairman of Penicuik First BID, said: “We’re really proud to have worked with such an indispensable organisation as the Penicuik Community First Responders and we’re sure the businesses we represent will agree it’s a vital investment. Just knowing it’s there is enough of a comfort to make it worth it, but if it saves even one life, you can’t really put a price on that.”

If you ever find yourself in the position of being able to help, you shouldn’t be afraid to use the defibrillator. If you attempt to use it on a person not suffering cardiac arrest, it will not work.

Before funding the defibrillator, Penicuik First asked if they ever get stolen and were pleasantly surprised to learn that this hardly ever happens. People recognise what it’s there for and what they could be responsible for if they remove it.

Now in pride of place in Penicuik town centre, the defibrillator provides comfort to residents, visitors and businesses that even more help is at hand in a medical emergency.