The Access AED was available in the Netherlands for some time via the company HCS Cardio. This small AED came onto the market in 2000 and was already turning heads with its striking appearance due to its compact dimensions. It is estimated that more than 15,000 Access AEDs were sold worldwide.
The manufacturer of the Access AED, Access Cardiosystems, released two different models: the Access AED and the Access ALS. Unfortunately little information is known about the latter model. The Access AED was certainly not a bad AED in terms of specifications: ECG display on an LCD screen, escalating energy up to 360 J, and particularly small dimensions (7.6 x 18.5 x10.9 cm) with a weight of 1.3 KG.
Unfortunately, these specifications did not lead to a reliable AED …
This AED was withdrawn from the market by the FDA because of a Class I recall in November 2004, the highest classification and most serious form of recall. Due to an error on the motherboard it was possible that this AED would not provide a shock if it were needed and there were also problems with the on/off button not working, making it impossible to provide a shock.
Most of the Access AEDs have been actively withdrawn from the market, but here and there some specimens are still floating around, one of which has ended up in our AED museum!