Summary
The incidence of cardiac arrest occurring in hospital patients away from the operating room or other locations where anaesthetic procedures are carried out is impossible to estimate. Of the patients who suddenly and unexpectedly develop a cardiac arrest, only a few survive. The survival rate is low, for most patients die from their underlying disease. But many are salvageable.
The organization and development of resuscitation services in the hospital is an endeavour towards improving techniques and methods so that cardiac arrest may be successfully treated. No success can be possible without the wholehearted support of the administration, the nurses and their supervisors, and especially the members of the Resuscitation Committee. As far as the St. Boniface General Hospital is concerned this essential co-operation has been conspicuous.
Table VII summarizes our experience: a total of 63 patients were treated. Twenty-five were temporarily resuscitated and five recovered sufficiently to return home and assume their normal activities. It is felt that even this small number of rescues justified the expense and the tremendous outlay of effort by a large number of interested people, and it is anticipated that the survival rate will climb with continued experience.
Résumé
Il est impossible d’estimer la fréquence de l’arrêt cardiaque qui survient dans l’hôpital chez des malades qui sont loin de la salle d’opération ou dans d’autres endroits où il se pratique de l’anesthésie. Parmi les malades qui présentent un arret cardiaque soudainement, de façon inattendue, seulement quelques-uns survivent. Le taux de survivance est bas; la plupart meurent de maladies sousjacentes mais plusieurs sont récupérables.
L’organisation et l’expansion des services de ressuscitation dans un hôpital constituent un effort en vue de l’amélioration des techniques et des méthodes
pour que l’arrêt cardiaque puisse être traité avec succés. On ne peut obtenir de succés sans le support généreux de l’administration, des garde-malades et des surveillants et spécialement des membres du “Comité de ressuscitation”.
En ce qui concerne l’hôpital Général de St-Boniface, cette coopération essentielle a été simplement remarquable.
Le Tableau VII résume nos expériences — un total de 63 malades furent traités. Vingt-cinq ont été ressuscités temporairement et cinq d’entre eux devinrent assez bien pour rentrer à la maison et reprendre leurs activités. Nous avons la conviction que même ce petit nombre de récupérés justifie les dépenses et l’immense effort accompli par un grand nombre de personnes interessees, et nous anticipons que le taux de survivahce va s’accroïtre si nous continuons l’expérience.
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Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Canadian Anaesthetists’ Society at Charlottetown on June 25, 1965.
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Minuck, M. Organization and experiences of a cardiac resuscitation service. Can. Anaes. Soc. J. 13, 52–61 (1966). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03002164
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03002164