Legal change needed to use volunteer resuscitation teams in emergencies

Finland’s social affairs and health ministry is drafting a national pre-hospital care strategy that includes assessing the role of lay responders in emergency medical services, according to a report by Finnish public broadcaster Yle.

The ministry’s review follows the suspension of volunteer first-aid group operations in April after a notice from the Finnish Licensing and Supervision Authority (Valvira). These groups, which had been active particularly in rural areas with long response distances, can no longer assist in emergencies without a change in law.

In countries such as Denmark, emergency dispatch centres can already alert lay responders to assist in resuscitation efforts.