Who are we ?

The RMC/BFM Association, created by Isabelle and Alain Weill, acts to inform, to train and to support medical issues.

Our primary goal is to contribute to a widespread deployment of Automatic External Defibrillators (AED) in all public and work environments.

To achieve this, the Association:
- Raises the awareness of French citizen about the simple, but vital use of AED,
- Promotes the purchase and installation of these devices by local and national organisations,
- Contributes to the promotion of public health laws to make the installation of AEDs in public places as mandatory as fire extinguishers.

The challenge of this action is to save victims of cardiac arrest:
. Each year, cardio-respiratory arrests are responsible for nearly 40 000 death in France (about 110 per day*)
. According to the “INSERM”, early intervention with AEDs could save thousands of these lives each year
. In France, the survival rate for victims of cardiac arrest is currently estimated between 2 and 3%*
. In Seattle, where the installation of AEDs is widespread, the survival rate is estimated between 20 and 30%*

*INSERM figures, May 2005 (French public organization dedicated to biological, medical and public health research)

Worrying figures

Each year, nearly 40 000 people die of cardiac arrest, representing about 110 per day*. Each minute that passes reduces the survival rate to 10%. Long time passes before emergency services are notified and reach the scene.

However, thanks to AEDs, solutions exist. In 70% of these cases of cardiac arrest, many witnesses are present and could act. In Seattle, where the installation of AEDs is widespread, the survival rate is estimated between 20 and 30% while it is only 2 to 3% in France. According to Inserm, early intervention with defibrillator could save thousands of lives each year.

The solution is to have a wide deployment of AEDs in public places

• A solution dictated by the Medical Emergency
  - In case of heart attack, every minute that passes reduces the survival rate of 10%*, early intervention is vital.
  - Most of the time, several minutes are spent before that emergency services can reach the scene.
  Witnesses are present in more than 70% cases of cardiac arrest*.
• An easy access solution for everybody, with a limited cost
  -Since the decree of May 2007,4th (Decree No. 2007-705 amending the Public Health Code about the use of AEDs by non-professionals) each citizen is allowed to use an AED.
  - A defibrillator costs about 1500 euros (excluding taxes).
• A solution saves lives
  - In January 2008, during a soccer game, the professional player Marco Randriana felt suddenly on the ground, suffering of a cardiac arrest. The presence of an AED in the stadium saved his life. The widespread use of defibrillators could save thousands of lives each year.

Comité Scientifique

The Scientific Committee comprises four members :

-         Professeur Pierre Carli : Chief executive of the Scientific Committee. Managing Director of the “SAMU” in Paris.

-         Docteur Jean-Jacques Monsuez : Cardiologist, Hôpital René Muret, Hôpital Paul Brousse.

-         Professeur Alexandre Mignon : Anaesthetist Resuscitationist Hôpital Cochin Université Paris Descartes

-         Professeur Xavier Jouven : Epidemiologist and cardiologist, Hôpital européen Georges Pompidou.