Does CPR Training Give People Skills and Confidence?

The American heart Association changed their guidelines in light of research which suggested that performing chest compression only CPR was just as, if not more effective as the traditional method. The reason is simple. By removing the need for mouth to mouth you also reduce the time wasted in trying to put the victim into the correct procedure never mind trying to remember how to do it correctly. The quicker CPR starts the better and the initial seconds count. Chest compression CPR works if the person doing the chest compressions does them at the proper rate and depth. They buy the victim time.

A combination of chest compression only CPR and the use of an AED device is the option that gives the victim the best chance of survival. The message appears to be slowly sinking in with more States looking at legislation aimed at making schools, education facilities and sports teams provide access to an AED. OSHA has instructed companies on what it expects with regard to first aid provision. If you own a company, have responsibility for employees or just want to know more you can find these guidelines at www.osha.gov

What else did the Penn Team research suggest?

The research conducted by the Penn team suggested that there are still wide gaps in the quality of CPR training being delivered. The majority of those who had received training were not confident in their abilities to use the skills. The reasons given for this lack of confidence included poor knowledge retention and there were also complaints about a lack of skills training practice when they were taking their class. These findings back up the decision by the AHA to offer online theory CPR classes but only award certification to those who also attend a practice session and pass their skills assessment.

So how can you encourage more people to do their CPR training?

One suggestion made by the Penn Research team is to use the CPR Anytime Kit issued by the American heart association to train the family members of recent cardiac arrest victims. They actually suggested doing it while the victim was still in hospital as the family should be very motivated to learn. People quickly forget how close they were to losing their loved one once the crisis has passed. Ok so it may sound a little extreme but with one person collapsing every two minutes from cardiac arrest yet less than 30% of civilian bystanders being willing to go to their aid you can see why extreme measures are being considered.

Does education play a part in increasing the numbers taking CPR training?

People are afraid of doing the wrong thing such as unintentionally making the situation worse. This is hard to do as the person will die unless they get help. This message needs to get across to the general public if we are to expect more bystanders to get involved in helping their fellow citizens.

People need to have more confidence in their skills and in order to achieve this, we believe here at cprcertificationguide.com that the provision of CPR training is something that should be left to the experts. If people lack confidence in their ability to resuscitate someone and cite lack of physical practice of their new skills as a reason, surely this is enough to end all of these internet CPR courses provided by companies nobody has heard of. It should sound the death knell for those companies that suggest you can learn resuscitation techniques in your lunch hour print your own certificate and be able to save a life when you have yet to practice any of your newly found knowledge.

We believe that people should be trained in CPR by either

• The American Red Cross
• The American Heart association
• Any organization that has been approved by either of the above
• The Emergency services and other first aid responders such as the fire department/police etc

If you are in NYC for example you might want to attend the free CPR classes offered by the New York Fire Department.

If you attend training provided by these organizations you are guaranteed of the quality of the material that will be covered. This guarantee doesn’t extend to internet and other CPR training providers who may lack up to date material or provide sub par education.

If you are interested in reading more of the findings released by the Penn researchers, you can read their press release here http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-11/uops-mot111111.php