The importance of cardiac arrest registries

Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is a global health concern. It is estimated that nearly half of all cardiovascular deaths worldwide are due to SCA resulting in an estimated 4 to 6 million cases each year [1,2]. Several countries have developed national out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) registries for surveillance and quality improvement purposes including: Japan, Denmark, Singapore, Korea, Sweden, Ireland and many others are beginning to collect data. There are also collective efforts in Asia (PAROS), Europe (EuReCa), and the United States (CARES) underway [3-5]. Collecting data is an essential first step in determining the subsequent steps needed to strengthen the chain-of-survival within a community. It follows the business mantra that “it is hard to manage something if you don’t measure it”. Communities that don’t measure their OHCA outcomes are not only unable to gauge their performance but also lack a reference point to determine the impact of any implemented quality improvement efforts. In 2010, the American Heart Association recognized the importance of data collection for OHCA and identified the essential elements of a high quality resuscitation system that includes: measurement, benchmarking and providing feedback to influence change [6].