CARES (Cardiac Arrest Registry to Enhance Survival)

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the leading cause of death among adults in the United States, with most of these deaths are due to a fatal heart rhythm disturbance called ventricular fibrillation.

Nationally, only about 35 communities actively monitor and report survival rates from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. The range of survival in these communities for ventricular fibrillation ranges from 2% to 35%, a striking difference, since the approach to the care of these patients is uniform and there is no evidence that patients in one part of the country are different biologically from another.

CARES establishes a model SCD registry capable of identifying and tracking all cases of cardiac arrest in a defined geographic area.  We have implemented the system in the multi-county area of metropolitan Atlanta, GA, with a goal to expand the system statewide. We will also work collaboratively with the CDC and the American Heart Association to share the templates and data elements with other metropolitan areas and regional or state EMS systems that wish to improve their performance in the treatment of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.  Because the data system is intended to be universally applicable to EMS operations nationwide, it is compatible with the National Electronic Disease Surveillance System (NEDSS) and uses generally agreed upon standardized data elements and definitions.

The ultimate goal of this cardiac arrest registry will be to help local EMS administrators and medical directors:

• Identify who is affected
• When and where cardiac arrest events occur
• Which elements of the system are functioning properly
• Identify changes that can be made to improve cardiac arrest outcomes

A uniform, simple and sustainable cardiac arrest registry is essential to help communities assess their provision of care to victims of SCD and measure the outcomes that are achieved.  It is arguably the most important step in improving out-of-hospital care, and ultimately the community's rate of survival from this common and devastating event.