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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 49(2)

Cardiac arrest in Australia: a call to action

Elizabeth D. Paratz https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2122-9889 A B C D * , Garry Jennings E , Susan Timbs F , Janet E. Bray G , Jodie Ingles H , Greg Page I , Jamie Vandenberg C and Andre La Gerche A B C D
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Cardiology, St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, 41 Victoria Parade, Fitzroy, Vic 3065, Australia.

B HEART Lab, St Vincent’s Institute of Medical Research, 9 Princes Street, Fitzroy, Melbourne, Vic 3065, Australia.

C HEART Lab, Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, 405 Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst, NSW 2010.

D Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry & Health Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Grattan Road, Parkville, 3000 Australia.

E National Heart Foundation of Australia, 9/565 Bourke Street, Melbourne, Vic 3008, Australia.

F EndUCD Foundation, Melbourne, Vic, Australia.

G School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University, 553 Street Kilda Road, Melbourne, Vic 3004, Australia.

H Genomics and Inherited Disease Program, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, 384 Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney, NSW 2010, Australia.

I Heart of the Nation, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

* Correspondence to: elizabeth.paratz@svi.edu.au

Australian Health Review 49, AH25034 https://doi.org/10.1071/AH25034
Submitted: 11 February 2025  Accepted: 13 February 2025  Published: 3 March 2025

© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of AHHA.

Abstract

Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) represents a major cause of premature mortality globally, with an enormous effect on victims, families, and communities. Cardiac arrest prevention should be considered a health priority in Australia. A multi-faceted strategy will include community awareness, improved fundamental mechanistic understanding, preventive strategies, implementation of best-practice resuscitation strategies, secondary risk assessment of family members, and development of (near) real-time registries to inform areas of need and assess the effectiveness of interventions. Challenges of patient access to specialised care and equity within the Australian and New Zealand healthcare system should also be recognised.

Keywords: Australia, big data, cardiac arrest, cardiovascular, clinical registry, framework analysis, policy, strategy.

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