Cardiac arrest can be quite sudden and in the case of delayed help, it can very often prove fatal. Sweden has devised a unique way of countering this problem. The country is now using text messages to alert volunteers near a cardiac arrest patient as soon as an emergency call is made.
The program undertaken by the Swedish government that involves a network of volunteers is called ‘SMSLifeSaver‘. As soon as someone makes a call on 112, which is Sweden’s emergency number, volunteers within 500-meter radius of that person are alerted immediately.
This helps the volunteers reach an emergency site in no time and perform Vigorous cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) if needed, especially in the case of a person suffering from cardiac arrest. The program is certainly beneficial for people in a wide range of emergency situations, but in the case of those in cardiac arrest, this is critically important.
After a cardiac arrest, the chances of a person’s survival are increased by a huge percentage if he or she receives timely aid. Trained volunteers are an excellent network through which Sweden has ensured providing such help timely. Since the volunteers aren’t exactly paid or engaged in a formal employment, it can be expected that they may not be able to reach or help at an emergency site.
Nonetheless, they are still immense help in many situations, especially at times when the emergency ambulances may take longer to reach the person in crisis.
Courtesy: Ubergizmo
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