Alan gives the main reason why we continue to resus in most conditions - it lets the relatives know that everything has been done to try and help their loved one. Consider if I turned up to a 30 year old arrest in asystole, connected some leads, then turn round and tell the relatives who were talking to their son/husband/father 10 minutes earlier that there is nothing that can be done. For the rest of their lives they will harbour the thought in the back of their mind that the ambulance crew didn't really care, or were too lazy to start resuscitation. To perform a resus, will perhaps allay those thoughts - at least in people who are not medically trained and get most of their education from TV dramas. To be seen to try everything will let those relatives banish some doubt from their mind. Once again, every call is different, and I think we as ambulance crews manage to get a good feel for the situation very quickly - it's one of our strengths. We do what we think is right at the time, and hope we don't get in trouble for it... Now a question for you Craig - What is TCA? It's an acronym I don't think I've come across before.