Better procedures and treatments are needed to improve cardiac arrest outcomes in the coming years, according to a report, “Strategies to Improve Cardiac Arrest Survival: A Time to Act,” published June 30 by the Institute of Medicine (IOM).

Prompted by the ACC, the American Heart Association, the American Red Cross, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Veterans Affairs, the IOM conducted a consensus study to determine the factors affecting resuscitation research and outcomes in the U.S. Within the study, the IOM assessed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the use of automated external defibrillators (AEDs); emergency medical services and hospital systems of resuscitation care; national cardiac arrest statistics; resuscitation research; and future therapies for improving health outcomes.

The IOM report notes that quickly applying the first chest compressions is critical to patient survival. However, the consensus study found that less than 3 percent of the U.S. population is equipped with CPR training. Further, there is a lack of “data and reliable measurement tools related to incidence and effective treatments” in the resuscitation field. This lack of data leads to difficulty promoting awareness of cardiac arrest and the proper response.

In light of these discoveries, the IOM made eight recommendations to improve cardiac arrest outcomes that affect both public and professional spheres. The recommendations range from the creation of a national cardiac arrest registry to the increase of CPR and AED training to acceleration of research on cardiac arrest therapies and the translation of science for cardiac arrest. The IOM intends for the recommendations to positively impact transparency, community engagement, leadership and reporting within the sphere of cardiac arrest.

“The ACC was pleased to be a sponsor of this important work to improve treatment for cardiac arrest,” said ACC Executive Vice President for Science Education and Quality William J. Oetgen, MD, MBA, FACC. “This broad-based systematic approach is well considered and has the potential to save lives.” 

Keywords: American Heart Association, Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S., Consensus, Defibrillators, Emergency Medical Services, Heart Arrest, Incidence, National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine, U.S., Health and Medicine Division, Leadership, National Institutes of Health (U.S.), Red Cross, Registries, Resuscitation, Veterans

< Back to Listings