The Importance of Bystander Participation for Out-of-hospital Cardiac Arrest in Victoria, Australia.

This thesis investigates the importance of bystander participation in the initial treatment for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, namely the provision of cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation using a public access defibrillator. This thesis identifies that bystander participation, especially bystander defibrillation significantly improves patient survival and the survivor's functional and health-related quality-of-life outcomes at 12-months post-cardiac arrest.