A POTENTIALLY lifesaving device has been installed at a community sports facility in North Berwick.

The defibrillator has been put in place at the Pilmar Smith Pavilion next to Wotherspoon Green in the town.

North Berwick-based Dr Wendy Thomson, who works as a locum GP for NHS Lothian, led the initiative to ensure a defibrillator was installed in what was a service blackspot to the south of the town.

Dr Thomson, who is also a BASICS responder – who help support the paramedics in East Lothian – said: “I moved to North Berwick a couple of years ago and very quickly realised how cut off we are from access to emergency medical care.

“It is one of those things that I am thinking of taking further, to government level, to say when a developer is building these estates, a requirement is they put in a defibrillator for a certain amount of people.”

Previously, the nearest accessible external defibrillator was at least a 10-minute round trip drive to this estate.

If a defibrillator is used within three to five minutes after a cardiac arrest, the chance of survival is increased from six per cent to 74 per cent.

East Lothian Courier: Dr Wendy Thomson and Stephen Wands with the newly-installed defibrillator in North BerwickDr Wendy Thomson and Stephen Wands with the newly-installed defibrillator in North Berwick

North Berwick Trust supported the project with a grant of £1,000, while St John Scotland also funded 25 per cent of the overall cost.

A spokesperson for North Berwick Trust said: “Thank you to Stephen Wands, club and community sports development officer at East Lothian Council, who was integral to this project and helped to drive it forward.

“Thank you also to North Berwick Community Council, who have added this defibrillator to their existing inventory to carry out regular checks as required by the circuit.

“Please do not hesitate to use this unit in the event of an emergency.

“Dial 999 for the access code.

“A defibrillator tells you exactly what to do, so no training is needed.

“If someone is having a cardiac arrest, it simply needs to be switched on and it will talk the person through each step –it’s like having an expert in the room.”

Pilmar Smith Pavilion, which is part of an extensive development to the south of the town, was named after Pilmar Smith, the ‘unofficial mayor’ of North Berwick and a former director at Heart of Midlothian FC.