LOCAL sepsis survivors have hailed news that awareness of the disease has risen by more than 70 per cent, thanks to a national campaign.

Lecturer in medicine Dr Michael Porter, originally from Clarkston, and quadruple amputee Corinne Hutton, from Lochwinnoch, have both been close to death from contracting sepsis – and both have strived to raise awareness of this fast and deadly condition, which can take hold of anyone at anytime.

So when it was announced by the Scottish Government that a campaign to highlight the condition, launched in February, had raised awareness by 77 per cent, both were delighted.

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The campaign saw every community pharmacy in the country display posters to warn of the signs of sepsis.

Dr Porter, who was rushed to hospital during Christmas 2015 while visiting family in Newton Mearns, said: “This is brilliant. The more awareness we have the better, but this is only the start.

“The best way to ensure someone survives sepsis is by friends and family recognising the symptoms, because the person with sepsis won’t recognise their own symptoms.

“We need a continual campaign of awareness in schools, nurseries and we need to make sure GPs and nurses are educating themselves on how to spot sepsis.

“The question ‘could it be sepsis?’ can be the difference between life and death.

“If you recognise sepsis symptoms in someone, dial 999. The ambulance will come quicker if you say it could be sepsis.

“I would be dead if I hadn’t gone to Newton Mearns that Christmas. It was because my brother, who was a consultant, spotted I might have sepsis.”

Dr Porter suffered full cardiac arrest five times.

And Ms Hutton had a similar brush with death.

The mum-of-one got sepsis in 2013 and had to have her hands and feet amputated to survive.

Following the campaign, which only launched because of pressure from Ms Hutton and her amputee charity Finding Your Feet, more than half of those asked in a survey were able to recall the specific symptoms of sepsis, including very high or low temperature and blotchy skin.

Ms Hutton said she is pleased awareness is increasing.

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She said: “When I had sepsis, no-one knew what a killer it was.

“The Scottish Government weren’t going to do a campaign to highlight sepsis, until Finding Your Feet launched a video which went viral, explaining how important it was.

“We need people to know the symptoms of sepsis and that this disease does not discriminate.”