The Gottingen AED model

Despite all progress in modern medicine, cardiovascular diseases and sudden cardiac death remain one of the most frequent causes of death worldwide. As most of these cases are caused by ventricular fibrillation which rapidly reduces the chances of survival and can only be terminated by defibrillation, inclusion of lay rescuers to perform basic life support and use automated external defibrillators (AED) within a public access defibrillation program according to the latest recommendations of the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) and the American Heart Association (AHA) has become a milestone in combating sudden cardiac death. Nevertheless, correct AED placement is still a problem and implementing a public access defibrillation (PAD) program is still a challenge. Therefore, performing needs assessment should be the first step in identifying suitable sites for placement of AEDs. The Gottingen AED model provides a tool for such a needs assessment. However, this model certainly needs further validation.