Be the hero project, assessing the quality of basic life support skills in school-age children

Abstract

Background: Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OHCA) ranks as the third leading cause of death, with a survival rate of less than 10%. Although 70% of these incidents are witnessed by laypeople, only one-third receive Basic Life Support (BLS). Educating school-age children (SAC) in BLS is an effective strategy to increase the rate of bystander BLS and subsequently improve survival. We aimed to determine whether there is the physical capacity to perform chest compressions (CT) with the required technical quality in SAC, determining the optimal age to begin BLS training in schools and if there are gender differences in performing BLS. Aim: Evaluate the capacity to learn and the quality of BLS maneuvers performed by SAC. Methods: During a four-month period BLS training sessions, led by nurses, were conducted in schools in Oeiras, Portugal. These sessions targeted students aged 14 to 18. Each session lasted 100 min. Results: A total of 734 SAC were trained. All students were able to provide CT with the appropriate depth. Male students performed deeper and more successful CT and female students were able to achieve better recoil. Conclusions: SAC aged 14–18 years old were able to learn and perform high-quality BLS. The findings showed no differences in results based on gender. Additionally, short practice sessions of 100 min, led by nurses, appear to be sufficient for the retention and execution of high-quality BLS.