Can the Quality of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Improve With Direct Online Feedback From the Defibrillator to the Rescuers on Their Resuscitation Efforts

Defibrillators which monitor quality of CPR via changes in thoracic impedance (for ventilation) and movement of the sternum employing an accelerometer (for chest compressions) will be employed in ambulances in Akershus county (Norway), Stockholm (Sweden) and London (UK). During phase 1 quality of CPR will be monitored without feedback from the defibrillator. During phase 2 the ambulance personnel will receive feedback via the defibrillator. During phase 3 the ambulance personnel will be retrained with particular attention to the quality problems that became apparent in phase 3.

Quality of CPR will be continuously recorded by the defibrillators and the data collected and sent via internet to Laerdal Medical. All other cardiac arrest data including survival will be recorded using standard datasets for cardiac arrest research as developed by a task force with members from the organisations in International Liaison Committee on resuscitation (Utstein guidelines). The data will be annotated and analyzed in detail by researchers at University of Oslo