Overview
This report draws on verified public health surveillance data, official government records, and primary source interviews. No data points were estimated, modeled, or extrapolated without disclosure. Projections are identified as estimates and are derived from documented source statistics.
Primary Data Sources
Gwinnett Fire & EMS CARES Report (2025)
The foundational dataset for this analysis. Gwinnett Fire & EMS participates in the Cardiac Arrest Registry to Enhance Survival, a nationally standardized EMS surveillance system administered through Emory University and the CDC. Gwinnett-specific metrics, including the 407 non-traumatic cardiac arrest events, 48.4% bystander CPR rate, 17.2% public AED use rate, and 12.8% overall survival to hospital discharge, are drawn from this dataset covering January through December 2025.
Gwinnett Fire & EMS Utstein Survival Report, CARES Registry (February 19, 2026)
Source for the Utstein survival metrics, including Gwinnett's witnessed shockable rhythm survival rate of 22.7% and bystander witnessed survival rate of 14.5%. The Utstein protocol is the international standard for reporting cardiac arrest outcomes in witnessed, shockable-rhythm cases.
CARES National Annual Report (2025)
Provides national benchmark comparisons used in the report, including the 42.5% national bystander CPR rate, 13.9% AED use rate, 10.5% overall survival benchmark, 37.0% Utstein bystander survival rate, and Alaska's 77.0% bystander CPR rate.
U.S. Census Bureau
Population figures cited for Gwinnett County and Forsyth County. The report derives Gwinnett's cardiac arrest incidence rate of 39.5 per 100,000 by applying the Gwinnett population base to the documented 407 annual events.
Georgia Code Section 51-1-29 and Georgia HB 534 (2014)
Referenced for legal context regarding Good Samaritan protections for lay rescuers and Georgia's high school CPR graduation requirement.
Analysis Approach
Survival projections modeling the impact of increased bystander CPR rates, including the 12-additional-lives estimate at Alaska's 77.0% benchmark, were calculated by applying Gwinnett's documented survival differentials of 14.5% with bystander CPR and 6.5% without bystander CPR to an estimated combined Gwinnett and Forsyth County annual cardiac arrest volume of approximately 520 events. Forsyth County volume was estimated by applying Gwinnett's documented incidence rate of 39.5 per 100,000 to Forsyth's Census population.
Limitations
Forsyth County does not independently appear in the 2025 CARES dataset used for this analysis. Its cardiac arrest volume is estimated, not measured. Survival projections are modeled scenarios, not predictions. The Utstein gap identified in the report reflects an observed disparity; causal factors were not determinable from available data and warrant further investigation by Gwinnett Fire & EMS and affiliated hospital systems.
Source Access
Source data is publicly accessible at mycares.net. Methodology questions may be directed to Work Readiness Center at 770-878-3175 or workreadinesscenter.com.