Can you spare 15 minutes to learn how to save a life? - David McColgan

Would you know what to do if a loved one had a sudden cardiac arrest in front of you?

A cardiac arrest can happen to anyone at any time – it could be someone you know or a complete stranger. And when it happens every second counts.

Knowing what to do in the ultimate medical emergency could be the difference between life and death.

According to new survey for BHF Scotland, only half of people said they could perform lifesaving CPR on a loved one if the worst should happen.

MSPs at Holyrood help to raise awareness of the ReviveR CPR training course

Most cardiac arrests out of hospital take place in the home, meaning you are more likely to need these skills to save the life of someone you know.

This February as part of Heart Month, we are calling on everyone to learn CPR using the BHF’s digital training tool, RevivR and it was great to see so many MSPs joining us recently in the Scottish Parliament to help raise awareness.

RevivR is free, quick and simple to use and in just 15 minutes you will be equipped with the skills that could help you save a life. All that is needed is a mobile phone and a firm cushion.

RevivR teaches how to recognise a cardiac arrest, gives feedback on chest compressions and outlines the correct steps of using a defibrillator, giving anyone the confidence to step in and help.

David McColgan is head of British Heart Foundation Scotland

It only takes 15 minutes – that’s a coffee break, half time in the football or the time you might spend scrolling through social media. So please put it on your to-do list today. It could be the most important lesson you ever learn.

Alongside learning CPR with RevivR as part of Heart Month, we’re also asking you to “Go Red” to help fund groundbreaking research into heart and circulatory diseases, which affect around 700,000 people in Scotland.

From wearing red outfits, to rolling out the red carpet at work or taking on a red-themed challenge, all will help raise money to find new treatments and breakthroughs.

We are the largest independent funder of research into heart and circulatory diseases in Scotland and since we were established in 1961, our research and campaigning has contributed to the annual number of people dying from heart and circulatory diseases in Scotland falling by half. Despite progress, heart and circulatory diseases still cause nearly three in ten deaths in Scotland.

We’re currently funding more than £50 million of research right here in Scotland – only made possible by the generosity of donations from the public.

For more than 60 years BHF-funded research has turned ideas that once seemed like 'science fiction' into reality. By going red for the BHF this Heart Month, you will be supporting the discovery of new treatments and breakthroughs for heart and circulatory diseases and helping keep families together for longer.

To support the British Heart Foundation this Heart Month, visit bhf.org.uk/heartmonth #HeartMonth

David McColgan, Head of BHF Scotland