Safe and Secure Communities

Cardiac Arrest Survival Rate - Performance Measure 1.02

The Tempe Fire Medical Rescue Department (TFMR) is an “all hazards” department that responds to all types of calls for service. Cardiac arrest calls, when the heart stops beating, require specialized training and equipment to provide the best patient outcomes (chance of full recovery).

Measure

Achieve cardiac arrest survival rates greater than the national average as benchmarked by the American Heart Association.

Why this Measure Matters

The City Charter states that TFMR is the primary provider of emergency medical services (EMS) and community health and the wellbeing of our residents and visitors is very important. TFMR implements training, ongoing education, and technology solutions with the goal of improving out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) survival rates to make Tempe a safer community and allow its residents and visitors to live full lives. OHCA kills more people annually than many other causes combined. Trained EMS providers have the equipment and training to intervene in OHCA to save lives. The best result in an OHCA is for a person to walk out of the hospital with no neurological deficits.

Information on OHCA can be found on the American Heart Association (AHA) website. Data on cardiac arrest survival rates is obtained by working with Phoenix area hospitals to collect data on neurological function after a cardiac arrest to determine quality of life following such an event and through the annual Save Hearts in Arizona Registry and Education (AZ SHARE) report.

Baseline

13.64% (CY 2016)

Target

9.3% annually, by calendar year

Strategies

1. Internal Training Programs

Improve quality of compressions through training on new equipment to increase compression effectiveness from 66% to 98% by June 30, 2025
Select and integrate a contracted physician to oversee TFMR paramedic and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) training by July 31, 2024.
Train 100% of new Police and Park Ranger staff on Cardio Cerebral Resuscitation (CCR) increasing the likelihood of quality bystander compressions prior to TFMR arrival.

2. Community Education Programs

Continue Cardio Cerebral Resuscitation (CCR) training at each Tempe Union High School twice annually.
Implement a bystander training program on Cardio Cerebral Resuscitation (CCR) at local middle schools and requested public gatherings by the end of 2024.
Partner with automatic aid agencies to track and identify opportunities to improve results at monthly meetings.

3. Technology

Purchase and put into service 12 additional mechanical chest compression devices to increase compression effectiveness from 66% to 98% by June 30, 2025
Develop pilot program to utilize Code-Stat technology to obtain feedback on patient care data 1 time a week, by December 31, 2024. This will allow for allowing for future in-field adjustments, and follow-up analysis.