On Boxing Day 2017, Charlotte’s world came crashing down when she suffered a cardiac arrest. Her incredible engineer husband performed eight minutes of CPR. 

Resuscitation Council UK is leading on the UK-wide adoption of the ‘ReSPECT’ process, which goes beyond End-of-Life Care, it’s about all of us at all stages of life having a healthcare plan that anticipates a life-threatening emergency.

Resuscitation Council UK have teamed up with GoodSAM, a platform used to alert people to cardiac arrests in their area, to provide vital CPR training and defibrillator awareness to increase the numbers of people available to respond to the ultimate medical emergency via their interactive and immersive award winning video learning; Lifesaver. 

“This was the first time I had attended a cardiac arrest, so I was a bit nervous, but I took a deep breath and reminded myself that someone needed me quickly. Every minute without CPR decreases the chance of survival by 10%.”

When Asad met his work friends to play a 90 minute kickabout, he wasn’t expecting to wake up in hospital. Were it not for the presence of two hospital medics, he might not have woken up at all.

On Saturday Feb 13, 2021, Dave had a heart attack and a week later he went into a state of cardiac arrest – the ultimate medical emergency – his heart had stopped beating.  

Resuscitation Council UK is the UK’s authoritative body for resuscitation standards and training and publication of the national Resuscitation Guidelines. RCUK’s courses are aligned with these guidelines to ensure they are up to date with the best evidence-based clinical and teaching practices. 

"Whilst it's not possible to predict the future, you can shape your future. Having a plan will provide a direction, whether this continues the way you originally envisaged or alters in the light of your experience."

When 17-year-old Benjamin Culff went to work on 13 August 2017, he wasn’t expecting to wake up in hospital. Were it not for the quick thinking of his work colleagues, he might not have woken up at all.

RCUK has published a position paper setting out the importance of the ReSPECT process in emergency care and treatment planning, and RCUK’s key recommendations on ReSPECT for the four nations.