This is shown by new figures from the Danish Heart Stop Register.
Behind the examination is doctor Kristian Bundgaard Ringgren, who is associated with the cardiac arrest register. According to him, the results may be due to the fact that Denmark has many volunteer helpers when a cardiac arrest occurs.
– If I have to make a bid, then I think it has to do with the fact that we have many Danes who – no matter where the cardiac arrest occurred – are quick to step in and provide high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
– We know that many Danes are well educated in it and have taken courses. In terms of percentage, we are also some of those in the world who are the best to step in, says Kristian Bundgaard Ringgren.
Among other things, the volunteers are organized through the heart runner project, which TrygFonden is behind.
Since 2017, nearly 125,000 people have signed up as heart runners. This means that up to 20 people are notified through an app when 112 receives a call about a cardiac arrest close by.
It is also one of the reasons why at 80 percent of cardiac arrests in Denmark in 2020, there were witnesses and first aiders who stepped in before the ambulance arrived. In 2001, that figure was 19 percent.
This is what Grethe Thomas, project manager at TrygFonden, says.
– There is no doubt that the last big nod we can attribute to this organization with heart runners.
The heart runners were created with inspiration from Stockholm, after TrygFonden could see that the heart starters around the country were not used.
In 2020, the project became nationwide.
– What we have learned over the past many years is that Danes like to be mobilized to volunteer in a step-by-step culture. You want to help each other and be available to step in for a cardiac arrest, says Grethe Thomas.
If you measure how many volunteers step in with life-saving first aid in the event of a cardiac arrest, and what this means for survival, Denmark is at the very top in the world, she says.
– In relation to the countries we compare ourselves with, we are in the lead in Denmark. The Seattle area in the USA has been ahead of Denmark for many years, but not more now. So we can afford to say that we are world champions in resuscitation in Denmark.
About 4,700 people in Denmark had a cardiac arrest outside a hospital in 2020. 14 percent survived at least 30 days after the cardiac arrest.
Source: The Nordic Page