[Prehospital cardiac arrest: concept of First Responders].

Abstract

Pre-hospital cardiac arrest is associated with a high mortality and morbidity. Early initiation of basic life support and defibrillation play a key role in improving the outcome. The concept of First Responders refers to networks of volunteer rescuers, most of them non-professionals, who intervene at the request of an emergency dispatch centre, ahead of conventional prephospital emergency medical services. These networks associated with public access defibrillation programs, and coupled with improved professional pre-hospital and hospital care, improve the outcome of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.