The first "Fight cardiac death" initiative fails in 1977 due to resistance from doctors and authorities. After a similar and very successful campaign in the USA, we became active again in 2000. Federal President Johannes Rau becomes patron. The use of automated external defibrillators (AED devices), which can be used by laypeople, proves to be the most effective way of preventing sudden cardiac death. For the training of the population, we give all participating urban and rural districts a total of 902 life-saving training devices on permanent loan - combined with the obligation to train 20 people per month.
After years of development, we present an active suspension system for ambulances. This system prevents dangerous vibrations and strong oscillations during transport - benefiting newborn and premature babies in particular.
The system will be used for the first time in the Stuttgart baby ambulance, which will go into service in December 2003.
An emergency happens - what should you do? Many people are reluctant to provide first aid immediately due to lack of knowledge or uncertainty. That's why we are launching LifeService M-AID - a small first aid encyclopaedia that can be downloaded onto a mobile phone. Users can use M-AID to refresh their first aid knowledge and look up measures in an emergency situation if necessary. A special version is available for first aid instructions on children.
Emergency calls are becoming mobile with the spread of mobile phones. In order to exploit this potential, we are developing LifeService, the first free emergency call system from a mobile phone with localisation options. This finally closes an important security gap. Although the spread of mobile phones has made emergency calls faster, it has had one serious disadvantage: the vast majority of callers are unable to give their exact location. Emergency services then have to spend a lot of time searching for the scene of the accident, wasting vital time. The intelligent LifeService software system can locate mobile phones and automatically transmit the location details to the rescue coordination centre when an emergency call is made.
Today, almost everyone has a mobile phone and uses it to call the emergency services in an emergency. This creates a new problem: the time it takes for the emergency services to arrive is getting longer because many callers do not know their exact location. This is why we are developing the LifeService112 location platform for emergency call centres, which can determine the location of mobile phones in an emergency and make it available to emergency call centres free of charge.
On 31 December 2016, we will have to discontinue our activities in this area due to the Telecommunications Act.
According to a study by Rostock University Hospital, seventh-graders are already capable of resuscitating an adult. Our "Retten macht Schule" initiative trains teachers in resuscitation measures with the aim of them then passing on their knowledge to their pupils as part of a lesson. To this end, we provide participating schools with teaching materials - including a training dummy for practising chest compressions. On 2 July 2014, our initiative receives political backing: the Conference of Education Ministers of the German federal states decides that resuscitation courses should be a permanent part of seventh-grade lessons.
