After growing criticism of insufficient AEDs, NS and ProRail are investing 5,6 million euros. By early 2021, a total of more than 500 new AED devices will have to be installed at all XNUMX stations in the Netherlands. The AEDs will be located at the station, so that an AED will be available within a radius of XNUMX meters around the station.
According to a spokesperson, the tender will be launched this week. The devices will also form part of the national resuscitation call system Heartbeat Now. The Heart Foundation also participates in the project and acts as a knowledge partner.
when every minute counts
According to the Heart Foundation, around 17.000 people in the Netherlands experience cardiac arrest outside the hospital every year. About half are resuscitated. The first minutes after heart failure are crucial. The average approach time of an ambulance is 10 minutes. When a victim is resuscitated within six minutes, the chance of survival is greatest. An AED delivers a shock via two electrodes on the chest to restore the disturbed heart rhythm.
The question is whether not only stations, but also trains should receive AEDs. Regional carrier Arriva announced last year that it would do so, but NS is not going that far. In 80 percent of the cases, a moving train reaches the next station within six minutes, according to NS.
what happens in cardiac arrest?
In cardiac arrest, the heart does not really stop, but it does not pump properly, so that the organs and the brain do not receive oxygen. The heart chambers contract very quickly and chaotically. This is also called ventricular fibrillation. With an AED you give an electric shock so that the heart can return to normal (defibrillation). The sooner an AED is deployed, the greater the chance that the heart will return to a normal rhythm.
