06/12/2026
Women experiencing sudden cardiac arrest in public are about 14% to 20% less likely to receive bystander CPR compared to men. This treatment gap stems from misplaced fears of inappropriate touching and lack of confidence. However, immediate high-quality CPR doubles or triples a woman’s chance of survival.The Survival and Treatment Gap The Disparity: Studies show that men are up to 23% more likely to survive an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in public than women, largely because bystanders are less likely to intervene.Social Hesitation: Many bystanders fear being accused of inappropriate touching or causing physical injury when attempting chest compressions on a woman.AED Reluctance: People often hesitate to use an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) on women because of the necessary step of removing or cutting clothing to apply the pads directly to bare skin.
