Texting In Sweden Can Help Those Suffering From Cardiac Arrest

According to the numbers, for every minute it takes for first responders to reach a person suffering from cardiac arrest, their odds of survival drop by 10% and this is one of the reasons why Sweden has come up with an interesting and potentially life-saving method of helping those with cardiac arrest as quickly as possible. This is done through the help of volunteers and text messages. For instance when someone dials 112 (Sweden’s emergency number), it not only calls emergency services but it also sends a text messages to volunteers who are situated within 500 meters of the person who sent the text message, allowing them to arrive and perform CPR if necessary.

The program is dubbed SMSLifesaver and will rely on volunteers trained in CPR to respond to nearby emergencies. Granted sometimes volunteers might not be able to help given the severity of the case, but we guess having someone nearby would definitely help, whether it be providing medical assistance or at the very least providing some form of comfort to someone unwell. The program was thought up after it was found that ambulances take too long to arrive due to heavy traffic in Stockholm, as well as ambulances being used for other patients who are being transferred in between hospitals or en route to the emergency room. Pretty awesome idea, huh?

Tyler Lee
Categories: Cellphones, Medical
Tags: texting