CITIZENS in Shenzhen utilized cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to save 83 lives by the end of 2023, since the inception of AED installations at public venues in 2017, according to information released at an event celebrating National First-Aid Day on Saturday.

Shenzhen’s first-aid penetration rate exceeded 4.33%, leading the country.

The city’s medical emergency system comprises 75 emergency network departments and 109 first-aid stations. Up to now, 43,000 AEDs have been installed in various public places across Shenzhen.

In March last year, the city’s emergency medical center launched the medical priority dispatch system that empowers callers by providing guidance over the phone, enabling them to take self-rescue actions before emergency personnel arrive at the scene.

The system has so far guided the callers to rescue 175 critically ill patients facing challenges such as childbirth, choking, and cardiac arrest. (Wang Jingli)