Only half of parents know whether their teen's school has a defibrillator - fewer know where it is

Cardiac arrest in teenagers is rare - and the response window is measured in minutes

Sudden cardiac arrest does not confine itself to middle-aged adults. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that roughly 2,000 young people under 25 die from sudden cardiac arrest each year in the United States. When it happens on a school campus, the outcome depends almost entirely on how quickly a bystander acts and whether the right equipment is available and accessible.

A nationally representative poll from the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children's Hospital suggests that many schools and families are not as prepared for that scenario as they could be. The poll, based on responses from nearly 1,000 parents with at least one child aged 13 to 17 - surveyed in August 2025 - found significant gaps in awareness, knowledge, and training that could affect survival outcomes in cardiac emergencies.

The awareness and readiness gap

The basic question of whether their child's school even has an automated external defibrillator (AED) on site divided parents almost in half. Only about half said they were aware that their teen's school has an AED. Among those who knew an AED was present, the knowledge gap deepened: only about two in five knew where it was located. Just over a third felt confident that school staff were trained and ready to use it in an emergency.

"Having an AED in a building is not enough," said Sarah Clark, M.P.H., co-director of the Mott Poll. "People need to know where it is and feel confident using it."

Among parents who did not know whether their school had an AED, the large majority said they believed one should be there. The support for having this equipment in schools is broad - what is lagging is the translation of that equipment into genuine emergency readiness through training and accessible placement.

The gap matters because speed is the central variable in cardiac arrest outcomes. For every minute that passes without CPR or defibrillation, survival probability drops by approximately 10%. An AED stored in a locked office, or in a location that bystanders cannot find quickly, is far less useful than one whose location is known and whose use is practiced.

Teens and parents: willing to act, but undertrained

The poll found substantial willingness to learn and to respond. About four in ten parents reported being trained to use an AED, and nearly nine in ten said they would be willing to receive free AED training. Of those already trained, almost all said they would use an AED in an emergency if needed.

CPR numbers were higher: nearly two-thirds of parents reported CPR certification, and most said they would be willing to receive free CPR training and perform CPR in an emergency if trained.

Teens are significantly less trained than their parents. Only about one in five parents reported that their teen has CPR training. Just one in fifteen said their teen had been trained to use an AED. Yet most parents said they would want their teen to provide CPR or use an AED if a cardiac emergency occurred nearby.

Parents identified concerns about teens responding to cardiac emergencies. Fear of emotional distress if the person does not survive was common. Feeling overwhelmed in an emergency situation was another barrier. These are real psychological concerns, particularly for adolescents, and point to the importance of training that includes not just mechanical skills but behavioral preparation for acting under stress.

Heart screenings and warning signs

The poll also examined whether teens are being evaluated for heart conditions that might predispose them to sudden cardiac arrest. More than a third of parents said they believe all teens should be evaluated for heart disease - but only about one in seven reported that their teen had ever had a cardiac evaluation, most often during a sports physical.

Clark noted the limits of standard physical examination: "Having the pediatrician listen to the teen's heart and review family history are important first steps. But some heart conditions in teens cannot be detected with a stethoscope alone. Teens need to report any symptoms that might indicate a possible heart problem."

Electrocardiograms can identify certain hidden heart conditions and are recommended by some medical organizations for teens experiencing symptoms such as heart palpitations, unexplained dizziness, fainting during exercise, or a family history of sudden cardiac death.

The case for school-based training

The readiness gaps the poll identifies are closable with deliberate effort. School-based CPR training programs have been implemented in multiple states and countries, some as mandatory components of health education curricula. Studies of these programs show that even brief training sessions produce measurable improvements in willingness to respond and basic technique competence among students.

The combination of widespread training and conspicuously located, properly maintained AEDs represents the strongest evidence-based approach to improving out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival. What the Mott Poll documents is the distance between where things currently stand and where they need to be - a distance that is primarily a matter of education, training access, and institutional prioritization rather than any technological barrier.