The primary goal of the Resuscitation Council UK (RCUK) is to improve the response to sudden cardiac arrest on the field and increase the chances of full recovery.

RCUK asserts that medical teams responding to an athlete experiencing cardiac arrest can achieve this through rapid recognition, high-quality CPR, early defibrillation, and effective emergency planning. The guidelines are designed for medical teams that need to respond to an athlete experiencing cardiac arrest during or shortly after sports activity, in all community and professional sports, such as football, swimming, and tennis.

Sudden cardiac arrest on the field is not very common when considering statistics: one in 217,000 people experiences sudden death. Michael Bradfield, Director of Clinical and Service Development at RCUK, said, 'Sudden cardiac arrest on the field can be challenging to recognize. Some athletes may appear to be breathing or have seizure-like activity with open eyes. It is important to recognize that these signs may be present; however, a person may need immediate resuscitation. Any unexpected collapse where someone does not respond should be considered as sudden cardiac arrest and treated accordingly.

In this context, he offers, 'Medical teams can use our document to support excellent practice in resuscitating athletes at all levels of sports.'

The Resuscitation on the Field Best Practice Guidelines include initial assessment and recognition of cardiac arrest, CPR, defibrillation, airway management, and transportation of athletes while CPR and defibrillation are performed.

These guideline elements are easily applicable to individuals participating in any sports activity and all cardiac arrests in the community, with or without a medical team available on the field, highlighting the importance of dissemination and awareness.

Download the document:

Download the Document to Resuscitation on Field