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We have a similar system in the Netherlands, only it doesn't use an app. When reporting a heart attack, the emergency response service will dispatch two ambulan
by vanviegen 5y ago
We have a similar system in the Netherlands, only it doesn't use an app. When reporting a heart attack, the emergency response service will dispatch two ambulances and activate the system to summon volunteers that live or work nearby. I believe they get a robot call as well as sms text instructions. Half the volunteers get instructions to pick up a specific AED somewhere first, the other half is instructed to rush to the victim immediately.
I've had the misfortune to gather some anecdotal experience with this system in the past year. In both cases, 4 volunteers showed up very quickly, well before the first ambulance (which in both cases showed up within the allotted 15 minutes of the emergency call). One of the victims was my father in law, who is alive and well today, most likely thanks to the volunteers. Unfortunately, the other one -a friend- was not so lucky.
- MrDresden 5y agoI'm sorry for your loss. Do you know how people are vetted for this? I am guessing they go through a course, and are required to redo them ever so often
- vanviegen 5y agoThanks. I believe volunteers need to attend a yearly CPR & AED training.
- tomjen3 5y agoAn AED is designed to be used by untrained, dumb, panicking human beings, so while I have no doubt these volunteers have some training, if you ever find yourself near a case and no volunteer coming, don't hesitate to grab it. On that note, if you work in an office building take note of where they are so you know where to get them if need be.
- mongol 5y agoSeems like a very well working system, with lots of redundancy designed in because of the criticality. Would be interesting to compare between countries. How many dispatch two ambulances, for example
- overscore 5y agoWe have a similar system in Ireland, but where volunteers take shifts on call with an AED. It has been severely scaled back due to COVID-19, but prior to that, volunteers would frequently reach patients with an AED more than 10 minutes before an ambulance arrived in rural areas. We would also provide BLS in the event of anaphylaxis, OD, stroke, attempted suicides, etc. A very effective system.