Reliability, sustainability and effectiveness of automated external defibrillators deployed in workplaces and public areas

In Australia,sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is a leading cause of death. Prompt defibrillation increases the likelihood of people surviving a cardiac arrest away from a hospital. However, owing to ambulance response times (especially in built-up metropolitan areas), by the time emergency defibrillation arrives, it may be too late to save the victim. Consequently, having a wide distribution of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) available for employees at workplaces and the public in general is essential to saving lives. However, the situation in Australia is dire. Even though perhaps more than 30,000 people die from SCA every year in Australia, there is scant distribution of defibrillators - either at the workplace or in public places. As AEDs gradually become more widely distributed, it is important that government policymakers and employers ensure that routinely maintained and monitored AEDs are correctly deployed at properly identified locations, with adequate numbers of trained rescuers. Further, public education programs aimed at increasing the awareness of how to use a defibrillator in an emergency situation would assist in empowering bystanders to be first responders.