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ObjectivesSmartphone dispatch of volunteer responders for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is implemented worldwide. While basic life support courses prepare participants to provide CPR, the courses rarely address the possibility of meeting a family member or relative in crisis. This study aimed to examine volunteer responders’ provision of support to relatives of cardiac arrest patients and how relatives experienced the interaction with volunteer responders.DesignIn this qualitative study, we conducted 16 semistructured interviews with volunteer responders and relatives of cardiac arrest patients.SettingInterviews were conducted face to face and by video and recorded and transcribed verbatim.ParticipantsVolunteer responders dispatched to cardiac arrests and relatives of cardiac arrest patients were included in the study. Participants were included from all five regions of Denmark.ResultsA thematic analysis was performed with inspiration from Braun and Clarke. We identified three themes: (1) relatives’ experiences of immediate relief at arrival of assistance, (2) volunteer responders’ assessment of relatives’ needs and (3) the advantage of being healthcare educated.ConclusionsRelatives to out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients benefited from volunteer responders’ presence and support and experienced the mere presence of volunteer responders as supportive. Healthcare-educated volunteer responders felt confident and skilled to provide care for relatives, while some non-healthcare-educated volunteer responders felt they lacked the proper training and knowledge to provide emotional support for relatives. Future basic life support courses should include a lesson on how to provide emotional support to relatives of cardiac arrest patients.

Background Survival from out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) varies across regions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between urbanization (rural, suburban, and urban areas), bystander interventions (cardiopulmonary resuscitation and defibrillation), and 30‐day survival from OHCAs in Denmark. Methods and Results We included OHCAs not witnessed by ambulance staff in Denmark from January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2020. Patients were divided according to the Eurostat Degree of Urbanization Tool in rural, suburban, and urban areas based on the 98 Danish municipalities. Poisson regression was used to estimate incidence rate ratios. Logistic regression (adjusted for ambulance response time) tested differences between the groups with respect to bystander interventions and survival, according to degree of urbanization. A total of 21 385 OHCAs were included, of which 8496 (40%) occurred in rural areas, 7025 (33%) occurred in suburban areas, and 5864 (27%) occurred in urban areas. Baseline characteristics, as age, sex, location of OHCA, and comorbidities, were comparable between groups. The annual incidence rate ratio of OHCA was higher in rural areas (1.54 [95% CI, 1.48–1.58]) compared with urban areas. Odds for bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation were lower in suburban (0.86 [95% CI, 0.82–0.96]) and urban areas (0.87 [95% CI, 0.80–0.95]) compared with rural areas, whereas bystander defibrillation was higher in urban areas compared with rural areas (1.15 [95% CI, 1.01–1.31]). Finally, 30‐day survival was higher in suburban (1.13 [95% CI, 1.02–1.25]) and urban areas (1.17 [95% CI, 1.05–1.30]) compared with rural areas. Conclusions Degree of urbanization was associated with lower rates of bystander defibrillation and 30‐day survival in rural areas compared with urban areas.