Updated Resuscitation Council Guidelines for 2021 now released

June 7, 2021

The Resuscitation Council (UK) updated guidelines for 2021 were released in May. These are evidence-based, expert written, revised guidelines for best practice and clinical excellence in resuscitation. They cover all age groups.

The implementation and use of these revised guidelines are essential to ensuring people receive the right care. Providing guidance for health and social care and public settings, they will give people their best chance of successful outcomes from cardiac arrest or improve patient and family experience in conversations, decisions and planning for end-of-life care.

The updated 2021 guidelines have been developed as the result of a continuous process over the last five years led by the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR). They distil the work of many international collaborators within ILCOR, the European Resuscitation Council and Resuscitation Council UK. The process used to produce the Resuscitation Council UK Guidelines 2021 has been previously accredited, and is pending reaccreditation, by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

Following the release of the new guidelines, the deteriorating patient and resuscitation service will begin to plan to implement the changes into practice within the next 12 months