Des Moines EMTs Report Rising Cardiac Arrest Survival Rates

(Des Moines, IA) -- The Des Moines Fire Department gathered for its annual awards ceremony on Friday. Bystanders, dispatchers, police officers, along with fire and EMS personnel were honored during the evening, all of whom formed the chain of survival for 30 cardiac arrest survivors in 2023.

“It was an honor to look back and celebrate a year of amazing accomplishments,“ Des Moines Fire Department Chief John TeKippe said. “The Des Moines Fire Department responded to over thirty-three thousand calls last year, and nights like tonight are important to celebrate some of the many ways our firefighters, paramedics and EMTs made a difference on those calls and in our community.”

Early last year, the Fire Department instituted Advanced Cardiac Resuscitation clinical procedures with neuroprotective CPR. According to a press release from the City of Des Moines, these procedures, along with innovative cardiac arrest equipment and technology led to a 30% increase in patients who survived and were discharged from the hospital neurologically intact, allowing them to spend more time with their families and loved ones.

With heart attack survival rates in Des Moines improving, other cities are noticing.

"I've had probably thirty agencies from around the State of Iowa that have reached out to me to find out what we're doing and are kind of wanting to do the same thing," said Des Moines Fire Department Captain Tony Sposeto. He credits a 30% improvement in cardiac event survival on new cutting-edge technology and procedures. "30 people were clinically dead and we've brought them back," Sposeto said, "and they were able to return to their families."

Sposeto says the survival rate in Des Moines is well above the national rate.

2023 DMFD Cardiac Arrest Fast Facts:

• 224 non-traumatic cardiac arrest responses in 2023
• 30 (13%) of these patients survived and were discharged from the hospital neurologically intact to spend more time with their families and loved ones
• That number is a 30% increase in survivability from the department’s 2022 data
• That is also 62% above the national average of 8% for patients who survived these events with favorable neurological outcomes

2023 DMFD Awards Recipients:

• Medical Director’s Award: Senior Fire Medic David Deery was recognized for his decades of dedication to emergency medicine, expertise and skills as well as his mentorship of DMFD paramedics and EMTs.
• Cardiac Resuscitation Awards: 26 Dispatchers, 17 Police Officers, 116 DMFD firefighters, paramedics and EMTs were recognized for their contributions to cardiac arrest responses that resulted in survival of a patient with neurological functions intact.
• Stork Awards: 14 DMFD firefighters, paramedics and EMTs were recognized for responses that resulted in the birth of two babies in 2023.
• Exceptional Citizen Award: Nick Greenwood was honored for rushing into his neighbor’s townhome and extinguishing a significant cooking fire
• Medal of Valor: Jason Courtney was recognized for his extraordinary actions locating and rescuing an unresponsive victim from a residential fire. Firefighter Courtney acted decisively in zero visibility conditions, and was able to singlehandedly move the victim over 20 feet to a position in which his crew could extract the victim safely. Without his actions, this patient would likely not have survived.

Note: Above statistics are provided as a courtesy from the City of Des Moines. You can learn more by visiting dsm.city.