When a person enters cardiac arrest, their heart stops beating and blood and oxygen can’t get to the brain. Left untreated, a person can die in minutes.

Every Second Counts

When a Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) occurs, getting the right care fast is critical. Each minute without oxygen and blood flow to the brain increases the risk of permanent damage and death.

CPR & AEDs Double the Chance of Survival

Each year, roughly 40,000 cardiac arrests occur in Canada and few people survive. However, survival rates double if someone performs CPR and uses an AED.

The Facts

During SCA, an electrical malfunction causes the heart to stop pumping blood. Without immediate assistance, the victim will die within minutes.

For every one minute delay in defibrillation, the survival rate of a cardiac arrest victim decreases by 7%-10%.

After 12 minutes without treatment, the survival rate is less than 5%.

Combined with CPR, the use of an AED may increase the likelihood of survival by 75% or more.

Places where 1,000 people over the age of 35 gather for at least 8 hours a day, including workplaces and public places, can expect one incident of SCA every five years.

Legislation in Canada protects individuals who use AEDs from liability when they are used in the context of saving a life.