Kids Save Lives – ERC position statement on school children education in CPR.: “Hands that help – Training children is training for life”

Sudden out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) with unsuccessful cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is the third leading cause of death in industrialised nations.1 After OHCA, the overall survival rates are 2–10%.2–4 In Europe and in the US together, 700,000 people die of OHCA every year. The same applies to other industrialised regions of the world. Many of these lives could be saved if more lay people provided immediate CPR.2 Emergency medical services (EMS) response times can be several (6–12) minutes or even longer.