Cardiovascular related deaths still represent about 50% of all demises despite their decreasing incidence in the United States and in Switzerland. About two thirds of these deaths are due to ischemic heart disease in which half of the patients die outside hospital, the majority of them two hours after the first symptoms. Moreover, sudden death is the first symptom of coronary artery disease in 25% of cases. In this country few of these persons receive adequate basic life support (BLS) at the scene because a coordinated plan to teach BLS to the citizen does not yet exist in Switzerland. With the aid of specialized medical societies, the Swiss Red Cross and affiliated organizations, it is proposed to elaborate a plan to teach BLS to the general public in Switzerland on the basis of the future European guidelines for BLS.