UK to deliver defibrillators to cardiac arrest victims with drones, but there’s a catch

The UK will soon commence delivery of defibrillators to out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) victims for timely intervention.

According to a publication by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the dream is close to reality after researchers tested using drones to respond to 999 calls as part of emergency simulations.

Using drones to save lives

Drones have been used for different applications in real life, but its use to deliver equipment to cardiac arrest victims is a new territory. 

The NIHR funded research to trial the use of the technology to deliver Automated External Defibrillators (AED) to victims of cardiac arrest. They designed a system to deliver an AED attached by a winch to a DJI M300 drone following a 999 call. 

The study involving 11 participants enabled the researchers to assess real-time communications between the drone pilot, call handler and bystanders, as well as how quickly the mock cardiac arrest victims were reached. 

The researchers found that the drone flew autonomously and safely, powered by Skybound’s automated drone software and had good links to the ambulance service and participants reacted positively to drone delivery of the AED.

However, there were delays once the drone had arrived on scene despite quick response to emergency calls. 

It took 4.35 minutes after the drone had arrived before a shock was given to the simulated patient using the AED, which could potentially be fatal as every second counts in cardiac arrest according to one of the researchers, Carl Powell, Clinical Lead (Acute Care) at the Welsh Ambulance Service.

Bystanders were also seen to struggle with the use of AEDs, which could be the reason for the delay in administering shock to the patients. 

Going forward

The study shows a lot of promise in the use of autonomous drones to deliver equipment to cardiac arrest victims outside hospitals.

However, there’s a need for more. The next stage of the research will test the technology and evaluate its suitability for adoption by the NHS. 

This will put the UK in the same class as Denmark and Sweden which already use the drones to deliver defibrillators.