Heart Attacks – ½ of All Deaths Occur Outside the Hospital

By Zack Zarrilli Updated on November 22, 2010
in Emergency Tips, First Aid

Heart Attacks – ½ of All Deaths Occur Outside the Hospital

According to a new study by Dr. Henry Ting of the Mayo Clinic, heart attack sufferers are not receiving the treatment they need and they are dying because of it. Unfortunately, the problem is not the lack of care provided, but the time people wait to call for it.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Each year 1.25 million people suffer heart attacks and ¼ of those people die from them. How long do most people wait to call 911 or get help with their symptoms? Studies show that they wait more than 2 and ½ hours – 11% actually waited more than 12 hours to seek help.

Here lies the problem. About ½ of those that die from heart attacks die within 1 hour. This bears repeating. About ½ of all of those that die from heart attacks die within 1 hour of the onset of the symptoms.

So what does this mean? It is no secret that denial plays a huge role in the death of many, but these numbers drive home that point. This information must be remembered and shared. Our friends and family are dying before they call for help. Half of them are dying outside the hospital. Please share these statistics with your friends. More importantly, remember them when your loved ones are not feeling right. Call 911 or take them to the hospital. Don’t let them talk you out of it. Also, taking a CPR class will help you prepare for the worst should it happen at home. For more information or to take an Orange County CPR Class please visit our website or call 888-277-3143.

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About the author

I spent 15 years as a firefighter and paramedic...

And too often I would arrive on the scene of someone unconscious, surrounded by a circle of people feeling helpless. Sometimes those people would even have CPR training but lacked the confidence and experience to act.

That’s why I started SureFire CPR. Our classes are practical and engaging – teaching you the crucial skills you need to know what to do and feel empowered to take action.