Information you may give to family, caregivers, friends, colleagues

If you lose consciousness and don’t breathe normally, any bystander should start to perform CPR. Encourage your family, friends, colleagues and anybody else to perform CPR training beforehand. Even if the ICD delivers a shock during CPR, the bystander in contact with you will not be affected by the shock. Even if a shock is delivered, the bystander should not stop CPR unless you regain consciousness. The bystander should call the ambulance as soon as possible.

If you receive a shock, but remain conscious, keep calm and call your doctor/ hospital or an ambulance, if needed.

Once the ambulance arrives, the bystander can inform the paramedics about the implanted device and the underlying cardiac conditions.

You should inform your close relatives about your condition and implanted device and let them know the location of your device ID card (preferably close to your documents).