Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation at University of Wisconsin

Abstract

CARDIOPULMONARY resuscitation in response to unexpected "cardiac arrest" is being increasingly practiced in community hospitals as well as in university teaching centers.^1,2 Techniques of external cardiac massage have previously been well described.^3-5 They have facilitated the initiation of resuscitative efforts by obviating the need for thoracotomy, making the number of people who may now be trained to undertake emergency resuscitation considerably greater than it was in earlier years when immediate thoracotomy was thought to be necessary for effective cardiac massage. There-fore, a resuscitation program involving all of the house staff and registered nurses was organized at the University of Wisconsin in 1965. Our purpose is to describe its development and to review the experience gained with it in the 18 months since its inception. Materials and Methods Equipment. —The mobile cart (Fig 1) was constructed in the workshops of the University of Wisconsin. It was designed so that