When it comes to cardiac arrest, everyone has a part to play in saving a life, including the one in five Scots who are disabled.
Every year, over 3000 people in Scotland are treated by the Ambulance Service for an out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA).
Unfortunately, only around 1 in 10 people will survive.
The actions of everyday people - bystanders - make all the difference. By taking action and starting CPR, the chances of the person surviving double.
The Save a life for Scotland campaign - supported by the Scottish Government - has been running since October 2015. The campaign's aim is to save more lives in Scotland from those out of hospital cardiac arrests. The campaign raises awareness and helps Scotland’s communities learn lifesaving skills, including CPR and defibrillation.
Over the past year, the Save a Life for Scotland campaign team has been working to ensure its resources and face-to-face sessions are inclusive for all.
A spokesperson said: "To equip everyone in Scotland with CPR skills we are committed to ensure that we leave no group behind.
"Twenty per cent of Scotland's population identify as having a disability and, whilst doing CPR is essential for the chance of survival, there are many other important parts to play, not just pushing on someone's chest.
"Survey conducted by the Resuscitation Research Group, Edinburgh, identified that there were barriers to members of the disabled community to learning CPR and lifesaving skills.
"We simply could not ignore these viewpoints as we risked systematically excluding important members of Scotland's community. As a result we have re-modelled our online resources to ensure they are accessible and inclusive and have provided guidance for those who teach lifesaving skills to members of the community."
The campaign emphasises that it takes a team to save a life, and that everyone has a part to play in the chain of survival - whether it's identifying a cardiac arrest, calling 999, starting chest compressions or giving instruction and feedback, locating a defibrillator and using it.
To support this, Save a Life for Scotland’s website is home to guides on the steps to save a life in BSL, Easy Read, audio, Makaton, and many more accessible formats.
To access the resources go to https://savealife.scot/play-your-part/.
