Now we look at the reasonable expectations of rescuers.
Do Rescuers Have to Provide CPR?
Well, it depends on whether you are a lay rescuer or a professional rescuer.Lay rescuers are not required to help. There are currently no states that require lay rescuers to provide care to medical victims. Many states do have Good Samaritan laws to protect lay rescuers from lawsuits arising from their good-faith attempts to render aid, even if the rescuers make reasonable mistakes. Grossly negligent mistakes are not usually protected, but are hard to prove.
Professional rescuers have different rules. In most cases, professional rescuers have a duty to act in cases of medical emergency, meaning that a professional rescuer cannot withhold medical care for most victims. The rules are complicated regarding rescuer safety, allowing rescuers to delay care in cases of exceptional risk to the rescuer. Usually, these exceptions are physical in nature. For example, a rescuer cannot be expected to rush into a burning building without the proper safety equipment or when the building is about to collapse. Threat of infection, though, is not usually a reasonable exception.
What Should You Do?
Deciding as a lay rescuer whether to help or not is extremely personal. Of course, the advice for protecting yourself from HIV infection during rescue attempts is the same as it is for sexual activity; the only way to truly protect yourself is abstinence. However, if we all ignored our fellow human beings in times of need, where would we be?A much more ethical and commonsense approach would be to learn the dangers of HIV transmission and follow universal precautions. Get the personal protective equipment necessary to provide good care without worry. Nobody expects rescuers to put themselves in danger in order to help another person - unless, of course, it's their duty as professionals. Danger though, is relative, and there is little evidence that any danger exists to the rescuer performing CPR on a nonbleeding victim of cardiac arrest.
Cardiac arrest victims have a statistically low chance of survival, so no person can say for sure if Claude Green would have lived had care not been delayed. However, there are no excuses for ignorance keeping anyone from trying to save a life.
References:
"Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)." 2006. American Heart Association. 05 Jan 2007"Estate of Claude Green v. Robert Bowman - Case Profile." 27 Feb 2006. ACLU. American Civil Liberties Union. 05 Jan 2007
Fairbanks, RJ, et al."Epidemiology and outcomes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Rochester, New York." Resuscitation. 2006 Dec 13
Mosher WD, Chandra A, Jones J. "Sexual behavior and selected health measures: Men and women 15㫄 years of age, United States, 2002." Advance data from vital and health statistics; no 362. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2005.
