Targeted measures

Tyrol wants a higher success rate for resuscitation

Symbolic image

(Bild: pixelaway/stock.adobe.com)

In Tyrol, the resuscitation chain in the event of cardiac arrest is to be improved in order to save significantly more lives. Representatives from the province, city of Innsbruck and the health sector announced on Monday that Tyrol was the first province in Austria to take part in the so-called "Resuscitation Academy".

The program comprises a total of ten measures, ranging from participation in the German Resuscitation Register and the use of mechanical aids by paramedics on site to the introduction of new intensive care techniques.

The province and the city of Innsbruck have invested a total of around 350,000 euros over the past two years to implement the "Resuscitation Academy" program of measures.

Tyrol-wide data collection of resuscitations 
The German Resuscitation Register (GRR) is an online database for the standardized collection of pre-hospital resuscitation data, in-hospital emergency data and further care data of patients with cardiovascular arrest. After ten years of participation by the Innsbruck City emergency doctor base, the province of Tyrol has now decided that all Tyrolean emergency ambulance (NEF) and emergency helicopter (NAH) locations will participate.

This data can be used to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the system in general, but also in relation to each individual base.

Gesundheitslandesrätin Cornelia Hagele (ÖVP)

Bild: Christof Birbaumer/Kronen Zeitung

"Basis for further development"
The follow-up care data from the hospitals will also be included in the register. "This will give us a complete picture of the resuscitation situation in Tyrol for the first time. The strengths and weaknesses of the system in general, but also in relation to each individual base, can be drawn from this data. The register therefore forms the basis for the further development of resuscitation in Tyrol," emphasizes Cornelia Hagele (ÖVP), the provincial health councillor.

Another measure is the equipping of the 13 emergency ambulances stationed in Tyrol with a mechanical resuscitation aid. This new technology should significantly increase the safety and efficiency of resuscitation. The telephone instruction of cardiac massage by the Tyrol control center has also been improved.

As part of the 10-point program, emergency vehicles in Tyrol were equipped with a mechanical resuscitation aid.

(Bild: Land Tirol/Hörmann)

In the event of a cardiac arrest, the chance of survival decreases by ten percent every minute. The first irreversible damage to the brain can occur after just three minutes. By systematically improving the resuscitation chain, the aim is to "further increase the probability of survival in the event of cardiac arrest", emphasizes project manager and chief physician of the Innsbruck Red Cross, Armin Krösbacher.

"The most heart-safe city in the Alps"
In order to raise awareness of life-saving emergency measures, the city of Innsbruck, together with the Austrian Red Cross and the Tirol Kliniken hospitals, launched the "HERZsicher Innsbruck" initiative back in 2020.

The aim of the initiative is to save 100 more lives after a cardiac arrest.

Bürgermeister Johannes Anzengruber

Bild: Birbaumer Christof

Since then, the focus has been on first aid courses and the ongoing expansion of the public defibrillator network. "A total of around 200 defibrillators have been installed in the city, of which around 70 are publicly accessible. In addition, more than 500 people have already completed resuscitation training with defibrillator use as part of the HERZsicher initiative so that they can act quickly in an emergency. The aim of the initiative is to save 100 more lives after a cardiac arrest. The aim is to make Innsbruck the most heart-safe city in the Alpine region," says Mayor Johannes Anzengruber. 

The project has been continued as "HERZsicher Tirol" since October 2023 and is to be rolled out nationwide.