Automated external defibrillators in the workplace

The evidence, as reported in guidelines from the European Resuscitation Council (ERC),1 that using automated external defibrillators in the management of cardiac arrest outside of hospital improves survival is strong. Because the survival rate decreases exponentially as the interval between cardiac arrest and defibrillation increases, the locations of first responders (people trained to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation who are not part of a professional emergency response system) and automated external defibrillators are particularly important. However, controversy surrounds the recommended sites for these defibrillators and the personnel who need to be trained in their use.2

Placing defibrillators in the workplace is controversial because cardiac arrest rarely occurs in this setting. This may explain the small number of studies—a review found only one specific original (retrospective) study on this subject and six others that studied defibrillators in various settings, including the workplace.2 3 4 5 6 7 Only 1-6% of all reported out of hospital cardiac arrests occurred in the workplace, and the proportion varied according to …