Why Bystanders Did Not Perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation on Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Patients: A Multi-Center Study in Hanoi (Vietnam).

AIM: The aim of this study was to determine why bystanders did not use formal Emergency Medical Services (EMS) or conduct cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the scene for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients in Hanoi, Vietnam. METHODS: This was a prospective, observational study of OHCA patients admitted to five tertiary hospitals in the Hanoi area from June 2018 through January 2019. The data were collected through interviews (using a structured questionnaire) with bystanders. RESULTS: Of the 101 patients, 79% were aged <65 years, 71% were men, 79% were witnessed to collapse, 36% were transported to the hospital by formal EMS, and 16% received bystander CPR at the scene. The most frequently indicated reason for not using EMS by the attendants was "using a private vehicle or taxi is faster" (85%). The reasons bystanders did not conduct CPR at the scene included "not recognizing the ailment as cardiac arrest" (60%), "not knowing how to perform CPR" (33%), and "being afraid of doing harm to patients" (7%). Only seven percent of the bystanders had been trained in CPR. CONCLUSION: The information revealed in this study provides useful information to indicate what to do to increase EMS use and CPR provision. Spreading awareness and training among community members regarding EMS roles, recognition of cardiac arrest, CPR skills, and dispatcher training to assist bystanders are crucial to improve the outcomes of OHCA patients in Vietnam.

Outcomes for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest transported to emergency departments in Hanoi, Vietnam: A multi-centre observational study.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the outcomes of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) transported to hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam. METHODS: This was a multi-centre observational study of patients presenting with OHCA to one of five tertiary care hospital EDs in Hanoi from 2017 to 2019. RESULTS: We analysed data from 239 OHCA cases of which 70.7% were witnessed, and 8.4% received bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). The emergency medical services (EMS) transported 20.5% of cases to hospital with the remaining being transported by private vehicle. No patients received external defibrillation before arriving to hospital. Return of spontaneous circulation in hospital was 33.1%, with 3.8% of patients survived to hospital discharge and only one patient (0.4%) discharged from hospital with a favourable neurological outcome. CONCLUSIONS: In cases of OHCA in Hanoi, both the proportion of cases receiving bystander CPR and EMS transportation were small. Urgent investments in pre-hospital capacity, training and capabilities are required to improve outcomes for OHCA in Hanoi.