The number of automated external defibrillators (AED) on the street has increased, but the network is not yet covered. The Dutch Heart Foundation and HartslagNU have mapped out where there are still AEDs to be built.
There are now approximately 25,000 AEDs that are affiliated with the HartslagNU calling system, compared to 20,000 last October. According to the organizations, there are still 1775 zones in the Netherlands where no AED hangs within 500 meters, should someone have cardiac arrest.
Double
The Dutch Heart Foundation expects to need double the amount of 1775 AEDs, because the devices cannot always be placed exactly in the middle of the zones. An AED costs approximately 1500 euros.
According to the Heart Foundation, the number of defibrillators has increased is due to the involvement of many Dutch people. “Citizens, companies and social organizations: we have come this far together”, says project leader Marianne Spoelstra.
The AED network has increased the chances of survival in cardiac arrest. In the 1990s that was 9 percent and now almost 25 percent. Every year, about 17,000 people outside the hospital have cardiac arrest.
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