“An iPhone application which could save the lives of hundreds of heart attack victims a year has been invented by a British medic,” Geoff Lakeman reports for The Mirror.
MacDailyNews Take: Why limit it to hundreds? There are well over 80 million iPhone OS devices in the world today already. This app could end up helping to save many more than “hundreds” per year.
Lakeman reports, “The free iResus app gives on-screen, step-by-step guidance to resuscitation in emergencies.”
“It has already been downloaded 5,000 times despite having only been available for three weeks,” Lakeman reports. “Developed by Dr Daniel Low, a consultant anaesthetist at the Royal United Hospital in Bath, the app asks users a series of questions about the victim and provides instructions on giving the kiss of life.”
Full article here.
More info and download link for the free iResus app via Apple’s iTunes App Store here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Dirty Pierre le Punk” for the heads up.]
Nope MDN
Headline should read “could help people save…”
People are still needed unless the phone detects a heart attack and calls 911…
There is also the “I am choking” app.
– Click on App Store. Wait for loading.
– Click on search tab. Type iResus. Go back and fix typo.
– Click on on iResus app.
– Click on download. Enter your password for the free app. Retype password after typo.
– Wait for app to download and install.
– Load app.
– Complete app registration.
– Wait for app to download documents.
– And there you go, you’re ready to – oh wait the guy died already. Should have called 911.
Ummm….considering the fact that the only thing about “CPR” that saves ANY lives is defibrillation in cases of rhythms amenable to defibrillation, and the fact that anyone with access to a standard defibrillator will not not need the iPhone app, and anyone with access to an automated defibrillator will follow the instructions on the device, i predict this app will save exactly zero lives.
It could possibly kill a few people by delaying time to defibrillation, which is the ONLY thing that will save some people. The rest of CPR is hogwash.
Studies show that mouth-to-mouth is not that important, but compression is: it keeps BLOOD flowing in the body. That’s not about restarting the heart, it’s about keeping the person alive until emergency personnel can bring defibrillators to do so.
Sounds like someone wants an excuse to feel OK about not learning CPR—or worse, not using it! If the mouth thing bothers you, look at the actual, reputable studies and be comforted.
CPR keeps evolving and improving and saving lives. Quick-reference info can be a part of that. Enter the iPhone!
As a certified CPR and Emergency First Aid instructor, I know the SIGNIFICANT value of providing immediate care at the scene, before emergency personnel arrive. Obviously, 911 is the most immediate action once the situation has been discovered. But waiting for 911 to arrive at the scene to provide care is waiting too long in most situations.
I’ve downloaded “First Aid” published by the American Heart Association. It provides guidance for administration of both CPR and AED. It also provides information and assistance in providing first aid care for everything from burns and cuts to bee stings and snake bites. It also provides guidance for how to handle different situations.
Sure, it takes time to pull up the app, and read instructions, but it has been CLEARLY demonstrated through thousands of situations that on-site preliminary care SAVES LIVES. Lives that would be lost if nothing more is done than calling 911.
EVERYONE should have one of these apps on their iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad.
i like Savage Monsters Monster Bash.
Scubaboy said it well.
If you are in a public place with 3 or more people.
1- have someone call 911 and be available to direct them to the site
2- have someone (one or more) look for an Automated External Defibrillator (AED)
3 – Start CPR – if so trained, or assist someone who is.
If you are alone, call 911 FIRST, then start CPR unless you know their is a AED very close by.
Finally, pray this never happens to you or someone you love.
“Failure to prepare is preparing to fail”
Don’t install with the shotgun app – they don’t get along…
I stand corrected.
when i said the rest of “CPR” is hogwash, i was using that as a recognizable term for “ACLS”. Sure, chest compressions might buy some time to defibrillation. The rest of the protocols for cardiac resuscitation are based on pseudoscience and possible increased likelihood of salvaging a brain-dead beating heart. Having laypeople fumble through an iPhone app for these protocols is a waste of time. Here’s what the app should say:
1) Close app and call 911.
2) Compress the chest hard and rapidly.
3) Hope someone arrives with a defibrillator and they have a shockable rhythm. If they don’t, not much else can be done.
@MacDailyHoos
My life was saved by that hogwash without a defibrillator, so I’d say we shouldn’t throw it out quite yet.
Lol, I was seeing this from the other angle…if I was having a heart attack, I’d be dialing 911 before I start running an app….
What WE ALL NEED TO DO IS
LEARN CPR,
FIRST.
NOW.
(then download app)