The concept of public access defibrillation was proposed more than 20 years ago. Since then, various programmes have been implemented in many major cities although not all have been successful. Fourteen years ago, the question of whether Hong Kong needed public access defibrillation was raised. This article aimed to answer this question based on the best available evidence. Over the years, the clinical effectiveness of public access defibrillation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest has been proven. Nonetheless various studies have indicated that among others, cost-effectiveness, knowledge and attitudes of the public, and incidence of ventricular fibrillation are important factors that will affect the likelihood of success of such programmes. In Hong Kong, because of the long interval between recognition of arrest and first defibrillation, public access defibrillation is probably needed. To ensure the success of such a programme, careful planning in addition to the installation of more automated external defibrillators are essential.
Keywords: Arrhythmias, cardiac; Electric countershock.