Promoting HeartSafe Communities
Arrhythmia Alliance stress that every AED placement must work in collaboration with the ambulance service (AS) and, if present, the Community First Responder (CFR) team. The intention of the Restart The Heart (RTH) campaign is to promote all initiatives in relation to public access defibrillation and to enhance and compliment the current emergency service frameworks; facilitating timely and effective treatment.
Arrhythmia Alliance recommends that whichever scheme a community adopts, the AED is positioned so that it is clearly visible and easily accessible in an emergency. In the event of a sudden cardiac arrest, every second counts! Ideally, the AED would be housed in a wall mounted cabinet, either secured or unsecured, permitting limited or full public access if and when needed.
Fundamental to a placement is awareness raising; Arrhythmia Alliance recommend provision of AED awareness sessions and training to ensure that everyone in the community is aware of the placement and location of the AED and is familiar with its use in an emergency.
Awareness raising and community participation can alleviate people’s concerns about resuscitation, can demonstrate how the scheme works, how easy an AED is to use and will explain how to recognise the signs of SCA.
The Chain of Survival
SCA survival depends on a series of critical actions. If one of these critical interventions is neglected or delayed, survival is unlikely. In 1990 the American Heart Association (AHA) developed the Chain of Survival, now recognised worldwide as the optimum response to SCA.
The Chain of Survival addresses the fact that most SCAs occur outside of a hospital setting. Death can occur within minutes, so in order to be effective the steps in the Chain must be followed promptly. Quick action by the first person on-scene can truly make a difference in saving a life.
The chain of survival protocol represents the sequence of four events that must be followed in the first vital minutes after collapse:
- Early Access to emergency care by dialling 999 immediately
- Early CPR should be started and continued until the arrival of emergency services
- Early Defibrillation should be administered with an AED as quickly as possible
- Early Advanced Care can be administered by emergency services personnel
A series of related and connected events, the Chain of Survival defines the roles of bystanders, dispatchers, first responders, emergency service personnel, paramedics, doctors and nurses, coordinated as a team to help save lives.
Strengthening each link in the chain helps to prevent sudden cardiac arrest from becoming sudden cardiac death.