Competing interests: The BMJ has judged that there are no disqualifying financial ties to commercial companies. The authors declare the following other interests: ZF is a member of the executive of the Resuscitation Council UK and chairs the ReSPECT subcommittee. She is on the education committee for the Institute of Medical Ethics and is funded by a Wellcome grant for her research. GP holds volunteer roles with the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation, European Resuscitation Council, and Resuscitation Council UK. He has received grants related to resuscitation from the National Institute for Health Research, British Heart Foundation, and Resuscitation Council UK. Provenance and peer review: Commissioned; not externally peer reviewed.