Telecommunicator Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: A Policy Statement From the American Heart Association

Every year in the United States, >350 000 people have sudden cardiac arrest outside of a hospital environment. Sudden cardiac arrest is the unexpected loss of heart function, breathing, and consciousness and is commonly the result of an electric disturbance in the heart. Unfortunately, only ≈1 in 10 victims survives this dramatic event. Early access to 9-1-1 and early cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) are the first 2 links in the chain of survival for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Although 9-1-1 is frequently accessed, in the majority of cases, individuals with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest do not receive lay rescuer CPR and wait for the arrival of professional emergency rescuers. Telecommunicators are the true first responders and a critical link in the cardiac arrest chain of survival. In partnership with the 9-1-1 caller, telecommunicators have the first opportunity to identify a patient in cardiac arrest and provide initial care by delivering CPR instructions while quickly dispatching emergency medical services. The telecommunicator and the caller form a unique team in which the expertise of the telecommunicator is provided just in time to a willing caller, transforming the caller into a lay rescuer delivering CPR. The telecommunicator CPR (T-CPR) process, also previously described as dispatch CPR, dispatch-assisted CPR, or telephone CPR, represents an important opportunity to improve survival from sudden cardiac arrest. Conversely, failure to provide T-CPR in this manner results in preventable harm. This statement describes the public health impact of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, provides guidance and resources to construct and maintain a T-CPR program, outlines the minimal acceptable standards for timely and high-quality delivery of T-CPR instructions, and identifies strategies to overcome common implementation barriers to T-CPR.

The effectiveness of modified basic life support module on knowledge, attitude, and performance of cardiopulmonary resuscitation among university students

Introduction: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation is a primary method used in the treatment of sudden cardiac arrest. It is a crucial skill that a healthcare provider and a lay rescuer should acquire to improve the survival and the neurological outcome of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Several modules were used to teach cardiopulmonary resuscitation for the healthcare provider and lay rescuer, but no module been developed that could be utilised in both population. Thus, this study aims to investigate the effectiveness of modified cardiopulmonary resuscitation training to knowledge (K), attitude (A), and performance (P) between medical and non-medical university students. Methods: This research was a single experimental study involving a total number of 125 students: 58 for a medical group and 67 for a non-medical group. A modified basic life support module, based on American Heart Association guideline 2015 was delivered to both groups under the same study setting. Pre and post KA scores were assessed using Res-Q questionnaire. The performance was evaluated by resuscitation feedback machine. The KA scores were analysed using repeated measure analysis of variance, and performance was examined using Pearson chi-square. Results: The study showed 64.8% of the participants were able to perform high-quality chest compression. Despite significant differences of sociodemographic background, there was no significant difference on effective chest compression between two groups (p = 0.200). There were also significant improvements in KA scores in both groups after intervention (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The knowledge of cardiopulmonary resuscitation can be delivered to everyone as aspired by our stakeholder to have one qualified cardiopulmonary resuscitation provider in a family. This modified basic life support module is reliably applicable to both healthcare and lay rescuer cardiopulmonary resuscitation training. All rescuers will perform in a similar manner, and this will tremendously reduce the discrepancy in the cardiopulmonary resuscitation qualities. Ultimately, this will improve an out-of-hospital return of spontaneous circulation rate.