Young Adults’ Perception of Mandatory Cpr Training in Australian High Schools: A Qualitative Investigation

Abstract

<jats:p>IntroductionBystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can be performed by any member of the public who witnesses a cardiac arrest and has the knowledge, training and skills to perform it. Even though bystander CPR has been shown to greatly improve the victim’s chance of survival, its training and performance rates are alarmingly low.MethodsOne potentially effective intervention to tackle this issue is to implement mandatory CPR training programs in high schools. We undertook in-depth qualitative interviews with 28 recent Australian high school graduates. The interviews were transcribed and then analysed, with participants’ answers used to draw conclusions on the acceptability of mandatory CPR high school training.ResultsResults suggested those that had undertaken basic first aid training in high school would be more open and confident to perform bystander CPR. Among those who had not undertaken training, cost and access were identified as the key barriers. Regardless of whether participants had or had not previously undertaken training, they understood the importance of CPR for the treatment of cardiac arrest victims.ConclusionAmong our sample, there was overwhelming support for the concept of mandatory CPR training being implemented in high schools. Should such a program be applied, there is the potential for this to have an impact on bystander CPR provision, and hence cardiac arrest survival rates, within the wider Australian community.</jats:p>

Recent high school graduates support mandatory cardiopulmonary resuscitation education in Australian high schools

“…Our investigation found that recent high school graduates were strongly supportive of introducing mandatory CPR training in high school education. This is consistent with a qualitative study of recent high school graduates in Western Australia, 9 and also mirrors the reception found in secondary school students in Norway, a country that already has mandatory CPR training in its high school curriculum 8 . Our data suggests not only that there would be little‐to‐no resistance from high school students in implementing mandatory CPR training in their high school education, but also that most students would welcome the concept.…”

“…Our data suggests not only that there would be little‐to‐no resistance from high school students in implementing mandatory CPR training in their high school education, but also that most students would welcome the concept. Another significant benefit to implementing mandatory CPR training is addressing socioeconomic bias in CPR training provision, given that cost has been identified as one of the limiting factors of accessing CPR training 9 …”

“…While there are undoubtedly many factors that would need to be considered prior to mandatory CPR being implemented into Australian secondary school curricula, the present study sought to focus on gauging the extent to which students would support or disapprove the concept of mandatory CPR training in high school. Should, as per previous qualitative investigations, 9 support for the concept be forthcoming, this could provide sufficient justification to remove the reasons of student dissatisfaction, criticism or lack of interest being used to argue against mandatory CPR training implementation in Australian high schools.…”

“…A qualitative study among recent Australian high school graduates demonstrated a strong positive attitude toward CPR training, as well as the concept of training being mandatorily implemented into high school curricula. While the sample size was low due to the qualitative nature of the investigation (n=28), the cost of CPR training was suggested to be one of the greater barriers toward undertaking the training of students own volition 9 . This would undoubtedly create disparities in the provision of CPR training between different ends of the socioeconomic spectrum.…”

“…The most commonly cited barriers to performing CPR among those not specifically trained in emergency medicine include a lack of CPR training, fear of infection, and fear of legal liability 5,8–10 . Compression‐only CPR has been encouraged to help overcome fears of infection associated with mouth‐to‐mouth contact with marginal success.…”