Updated CPR & First Aid Guidelines Released

The 2020 CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) & ECC (Emergency Cardiovascular Care) Guidelines were released on November 4, 2020. All up-to-date CPR and First Aid related training courses are based on the most current and comprehensive review of resuscitation science, systems, protocols, and education published by the AHA every 5 years or as new studies and publications release. The American Heart Association (AHA) unveiled newest CPR and First Aid Science guidelines, which aim to improve rescue time and make the process of layrescuer first response easier with better outcomes. The updated AHA publication, Circulation is an industry standard for protocols to follow. International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) for outside USA standards, also released these updates for universal CPR international guidelines that comply with ECC and AHA released publications. IOHSA professionals have developed & released curriculum that meets these updated guidelines for any IOHSA course provided to clients and students across the USA and globally.

Longer CPR/AED Training Courses Do Not Mean Better Retention Over The Long Term

A total of 1095 volunteers were randomly assigned to receive CPR/AED-training courses of 2h (375 persons), 4h (378 persons) or 7h (342 persons) duration. Courses were held in accordance with the guidelines for CPR. All trainees were tested immediately after the initial class in a standardized test scenario using an AED and a manikin. Either at 6 or at 12 months, retests were given to 164 and 206 volunteers, respectively. The conclusion: A 2-h class is sufficient to acquire and retain CPR and AED skills for an extended time period provided that a brief re-evaluation is performed after 6 months. More Details

Low-dose, high-frequency CPR training improves skill retention of in-hospital pediatric providers.

Retention of CPR skills was 2.3 times (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.1-4.5; P=.02) more likely after 2 trainings and 2.9 times (95% CI: 1.4-6.2; P=.005) more likely after 3 trainings. CONCLUSIONS: Brief bedside booster (refresher) CPR training improves CPR skill retention. More details

Increasing Training Frequency Has An Effect on Performance & Quality

Training should be targeted at skills most likely to be used in the clinical setting. A study of experienced and specially trained physicians in an acute care setting showed satisfactory CPR performance in cardiac arrests. The authors concluded that this was due to frequent training and frequent attendance at cardiac arrests in their work setting. More Details

One Minute Video Proves Effective: American Heart Association Endorses Online Training

A 60-second training video may be all it takes to save a life, researchers found in a new study funded by the American Heart Association. Study participants who viewed a one-minute CPR instructional video were more likely to attempt CPR and perform a higher quality of CPR than those who did not watch the video. More surprising was that the group who watched the one-minute training video performed better and made better decisions than those who watched a five- or eight-minute version, suggesting that less may be more when it comes to teaching CPR basics.

Short Video-Based CPR Course Just as Effective as Instructor-Led Longer Course

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found that a user-friendly, 30-minute, video-based cardiopulmonary resuscitation training session is just as effective as the traditional three- to four-hour course in teaching basic life-saving techniques to laypersons. In addition, at six months after the training – a critical point for CPR skill retention – those who took the shorter course performed CPR and used an automated external defibrillator (AED) just as well or better than those who take the traditional training. These findings, published in the August issue of the journal Resuscitation are the first to evaluate and document the effectiveness of long-term retention of the new 30-minute CPR-AED training. “The results of this investigation were very compelling. This study suggests that hands-on practice is not necessary …Thus, training tools that utilize cognitive modes, such as the Internet and DVD demonstrations, may be just as effective.” Immediately after taking the class, there were no significant differences in CPR performance between the students who took the three-hour course as compared to those who took the 30-minute course. The research was supported by the American Heart Association, the Laerdal Medical Corp., and Phillips Medical Systems and American Airlines. More Details

Research shows the more you train employees the less worker's compensation claims

Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety case study: The role of supervisors to aid injured workers, access health care, and provide reasonable accommodation may prevent prolonged disability among workers reporting musculoskeletal pain. Although supervisor training has been a common element of broad-based ergonomic interventions to prevent injuries, the impact of supervisor training alone to improve injury response has not been studied. In a controlled design, 11 supervisors in an intervention group and 12 supervisors in a delayed intervention control group from the same plant were provided a 4-hour training workshop. The workshop emphasized communication skills and ergonomic accommodation for workers reporting injuries or health concerns. Workers' compensation claims data in the 7 months before and after the workshop showed a 47% reduction in new claims and an 18% reduction in active lost-time claims versus 27% and 7%, respectively, in the control group. Improving the response of frontline supervisors to employee's work-related health and safety concerns may produce sustainable reductions in injury claims and disability costs.