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The Arizona emergency medical services system designated 31 hospitals as specialized out-of-hospital cardiac arrest receiving centers in 2007. These centers committed to providing therapeutic hypothermia and early coronary angiography when indicated. Paramedics transported cardiac arrest survivors to these centers, bypassing other centers, so long as the added transport time would not be more than 15 minutes. Researchers compared care and outcomes at these receiving hospitals during the 6 months prior to implementation and the first 2 to 3 years after.
Provision of therapeutic hypothermia increased from 0% to 44%, and postarrest cardiac catheterization increased from 12% to 31%. Survival increased from 9% to 14%, and survival with favorable …