Gym memberships typically increase by 25-30% in January. New Year resolutions bring a surge of new members through the doors, and existing members often increase their training frequency. For gym operators, this is good news commercially. But it also means more people exercising, more hearts under stress, and statistically, a higher chance of a cardiac emergency.
The probability of experiencing a fatal arrhythmia is estimated to be three times higher during exercise than at rest. For most people, the absolute risk remains low. But when you multiply that risk across hundreds or thousands of members pushing themselves in January, the numbers start to matter.
Yet many fitness facilities still treat AED provision as a tick box exercise rather than a clinical governance issue. A device gets purchased, mounted on a wall, and largely forgotten about until something goes wrong.
What the evidence tells us
An 18 year observational study conducted across 252 sports facilities in Italy examined survival outcomes following sudden cardiac arrest. The research, published in Heart (2018), tracked exercise-related cardiac arrests and compared outcomes between centres that had an on-site AED and those that did not.
The findings were stark.
Neurologically intact survival was 93% in centres with an on-site AED. In centres without one, it was just 9%.
That is not a marginal difference. That is the difference between someone walking out of hospital to see their family, and a fatality.
The study also found that time to first shock was significantly reduced when an AED was already on site. 3.3 minutes with an on-site device, compared to 7.3 minutes when waiting for emergency services to arrive with one.
According to the Resuscitation Council UK, survival chances fall by around 10% for every minute without CPR and defibrillation. Those four minutes are not a minor detail. They are often the difference between a full neurological recovery and a poor outcome.
This is not an isolated finding
The Italian study is one of the cleanest comparisons of outcomes in facilities with and without AEDs, but it is not the only evidence.
A Swedish registry study looking at exercise-related cardiac arrests at sports arenas (including gyms and fitness centres) found 30 day survival of 55.7% at sports arenas compared to 30.0% outside arenas. AED use before emergency services arrived was significantly higher at sports venues.
Research from the United States comparing cardiac arrest outcomes at exercise facilities versus other indoor locations found survival to discharge was higher at exercise sites (56% at traditional fitness centres) than at non-exercise indoor sites (34%).
The evidence base is consistent. When an AED is available on site and used quickly, outcomes are dramatically better.
Having an AED is not enough
Owning an AED and having an effective AED programme are not the same thing.
A device with expired pads or a flat battery provides false reassurance at exactly the moment it matters most. An AED locked in a cupboard or stored in a back office is not going to be retrieved quickly enough to make a difference. Staff who have never been shown how to respond will hesitate when every second counts.
An effective AED programme means:
The device is accessible. It should be visible, clearly signed, and retrievable within seconds. Not locked away, not in a staff-only area.
The device is maintained. Pads and batteries have expiry dates. Status indicators need to be checked regularly. Someone needs to be responsible for this, and it needs to be documented.
Staff know how to respond. Not just how to use the AED (the device will talk them through that), but the whole emergency response. Who calls 999? Who starts CPR? Who gets the AED? Who meets the ambulance? This needs to be thought through and practised.
The question for gym operators
Is your AED ready? Not just present, but ready.
When was it last checked? Are consumables in date? Do your team know where it is? Do they know what to do if someone collapses?
If you are unsure about any of this, or just want to talk through your current setup, feel free to get in touch. We help organisations with everything from equipment supply through to ongoing governance and servicing. Always happy to help.
References
Aschieri D, Penela D, et al. Outcomes after sudden cardiac arrest in sports centres with and without on-site external defibrillators. Heart. 2018;104(16):1344-1349.
Resuscitation Council UK. Defibrillation and AEDs.
Frisk Torell M, et al. Exercise-related out-of-hospital cardiac arrest at sports arenas. PLOS ONE. 2019.
Page RL, et al. Use of automated external defibrillators at exercise facilities. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2013.
