World Resuscitation Day: Fear of errors during resuscitation - What can help
Quick Look
- In Germany, in just over half of resuscitation cases, laypeople begin chest compressions before the emergency services arrive.
- Barriers such as fear of making mistakes, disgust and physical closeness are reduced through school lessons from grade 7 onwards and telephone instructions from the control centers.
- As an example, Denmark shows that a long-term strategy can increase the lay helper rate to 77 percent.
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Why It Matters
The lay rescuer rate in Germany is around 53.5 percent according to the German resuscitation register for 2025. Many people hesitate to help in a cardiac arrest due to fear of making mistakes, disgust or the need for physical closeness. Training and telephone guidance from control centers are seen as measures to reduce these obstacles.
CPR can be a deterrent - blood, disgust and fear of making mistakes play a role. Training and telephone instructions are intended to reduce inhibitions.
In first aid courses, people often practice on a dummy. (Archive image) Photo: Soeren Stache/dpa
Berlin. When a person collapses, every second counts. But many hesitate, among other things, because they are afraid of making mistakes. The so-called first aid rate is just over half. In these cases, according to the German resuscitation register, laypeople began resuscitation, i.e. with chest compressions, before the emergency services later arrived.
“In 2025, laypeople began resuscitation in 53.5 percent of resuscitation cases in which the emergency services were not already on site,” said Jan-Thorsten Gräsner, spokesman for the German resuscitation register. A case in which the emergency services later started or continued resuscitation is considered a resuscitation case.
This means that lifesaving can still be improved. How training can help – and why schools and control centers play a role. An overview of World Resuscitation Day on October 16th.
When helping suddenly means being close
In everyday life, people keep their distance. During a chest compression, direct physical contact is suddenly necessary. Worries about breaking ribs or making the situation worse can also slow you down. The European Resuscitation Council (ERC) guidelines address such barriers.
The German Resuscitation Council (GRC) cites fear of doing something wrong as the most common reason for not intervening. According to the 2025 resuscitation register, around 70 percent of resuscitation attempts took place in the home environment. So how can the inhibition threshold be lowered?
Learn to help – as early as possible
One strategy starts at school: the GRC requires resuscitation lessons from grade 7 onwards with two lessons per year. In 2014, the school committee of the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs recommended that the topic be anchored in the state curricula. However, according to the GRC, the recommendation has not been implemented across the board.
This creates a conflict of goals: resuscitation should reach as many people as possible - but it has to be accommodated in the busy school routine. Knowledge once learned can also fade. Regular refresher courses are intended to help renew knowledge and operational confidence.
Support in an emergency from the control center
Another approach applies precisely to emergencies: Anyone who dials 112 can be guided step by step by the control center. In 2025, first responders received telephone support in 38.4 percent of the cases recorded in the resuscitation register. In 2024 it was 40.4 percent.
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According to the federal government, there are also around eleven digital first aider systems in Germany, including Mobile Retter, Region der Lebensretter and KatRetter, which first aiders can register with. If a cardiac arrest is suspected, registered helpers are alerted via an app in parallel to the emergency services, depending on the system. This means you can start resuscitation more quickly or, in some regions, bring a defibrillator to the scene.
Denmark is seen as an example of a long-term strategy to strengthen lay support. These include, among other things, CPR classes in schools and a national register of publicly available defibrillators. According to the Danish resuscitation register, the proportion of cases of resuscitation treatment by laypeople increased from 20 percent in 2001 to 77 percent in 2018 - almost fourfold.
Which is crucial
Training and telephone instructions complement each other: training strengthens safety before an emergency, control centers help in an emergency. The crucial thing is to dial 112 and begin chest compressions immediately, said Gräsner.
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What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The rate of lay helpers in Germany will rise to over 65 percent by 2030 if resuscitation lessons are introduced across the board in schools.
Possible · Within years
Open Questions
- How effective are digital first aid systems such as mobile rescuers in practice?
- What concrete steps is the Conference of Ministers of Education planning to anchor resuscitation teaching in schools across the board?
- What is the cost of introducing regular resuscitation refresher courses to the general population?
