Background: Basic life support (BLS) significantly improves survival and neurological outcomes after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). However, bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) rates vary widely worldwide, reaching only 40% in Geneva, Switzerland. The European Resuscitation Council’s “Kids Save Lives” statement advocates for integrating BLS education into mandatory school curricula to improve bystander CPR rates, and thus OHCA outcomes. Training medical students as BLS instructors could help address the shortage of qualified instructors needed to implement school-based BLS programs in primary schools. Objective: The primary aim of this pilot study was to assess the #feasibility of involving medical students as BLS instructors for primary school classes and to evaluate the impact of their teaching on primary school students’ immediate knowledge acquisition and self-confidence. Methods: This pilot implementation study was conducted in Geneva, Switzerland. Second- and third-year medical students were presented the project during their emergency skills training and invited to complete an online questionnaire. Sixteen students were selected and underwent instructor training, enabling them to deliver a BLS course in a primary school class. Participating seventh-grade primary school students completed a questionnaire designed to assess immediate knowledge acquisition and confidence. The primary outcome was the #feasibility of involving medical students as BLS instructors, including the proportion of medical students willing to become BLS instructors, the number trained and certified, and the number of BLS courses delivered. Secondary outcomes included children’s mean knowledge score and confidence in calling the emergency phone number. Predictors of willingness, and of knowledge and confidence, were also examined. Results: Among 325 eligible students, 107 (32.9%) completed the questionnaire, and 87 (26.8% of all eligible students; 81.3% of respondents) expressed willingness to fully participate in this program. The 16 selected students successfully completed the instructor training and delivered courses in 16 primary school classes. No significant predictors of willingness were identified. A total of 295 (81.7%) of 361 children completed the postcourse questionnaires. Knowledge acquisition was high, with a mean score of 5.4 (SD 1.1) out of 7. High proportions of correct responses were observed for most BLS concepts, except for breathing assessment and recovery position indications. Overall, 78% (230/295) of children reported confidence in calling emergency services. No significant predictors of knowledge or confidence were found. Conclusions: Medical students can effectively deliver BLS training to primary school students and may represent a useful workforce for school-based BLS programs. However, the low response rate introduces a selection bias, as many students did not respond and the observed willingness may not reflect that of the overall student population. Sustainable scale-up will require involving other instructors. Further studies should assess the #feasibility of large-scale implementation.

Background: Health care professionals must stay updated with the latest guidelines for basic life support (BLS) and advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) to effectively assist patients during cardiac emergencies. Since its launch in 2018, the Ghana Heart Initiative has significantly enhanced the skills and knowledge of health care professionals in managing cardiovascular diseases, including cardiac emergencies. Objective: This study aims to assess the knowledge and skills of BLS and ACLS among health care professionals immediately after training in Ghana. Methods: This cross-sectional, training-based study involved 541 and 302 health care professionals trained in BLS and ACLS, respectively. Among them, 229 BLS and 124 ACLS-trained participants completed the questionnaires immediately after the training, and their data were included in the final analysis. Knowledge was assessed using a standardized questionnaire and an instructor-led skills evaluation based on the updated 2018 and 2020 American Heart Association guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and emergency cardiovascular care. Results: This study shows that 74.6% (171/229) of the health care professionals had adequate knowledge and skills in BLS. Those working in tertiary health care facilities were 80% less likely (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 0.20, 95% CI 0.07-0.59; P=.003) to have adequate BLS knowledge and skills than those in primary health care facilities. Health care professionals from regions such as Volta and Oti were 4.94 times more likely to have adequate BLS knowledge and skills compared to those from Bono East (AOR 4.94, 95% CI 1.17-20.80; P=.03). Over 73.3% (91/124) of health care professionals had adequate knowledge and skills in ACLS. Males were 7.05 times more likely (AOR 7.05, 95% CI 2.69-18.46; P

Background: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is vital for improving patient outcomes in medical emergencies. Both laypersons and healthcare professionals often seek guidance on performing CPR. In today's digital age, many turn to easily accessible platforms like YouTube for practical skills. Objective: This study evaluates the didactic and content quality of CPR videos on YouTube using comprehensive checklists and investigates the association between the assigned quality scores and type of publisher, view count, and video rankings. Methods: Videos were included based on defined search terms and exclusion criteria. Two emergency physicians rated each video independently using validated checklists concerning content and didactic quality. Linear regression analysis was performed to assess the relationships between video quality scores and view counts, as well as video rankings. Results: Of the 250 videos identified, 74 met the inclusion criteria. On the content checklist, videos scored an average of 56.5%, and on the didactic checklist, they scored 66.6%. None achieved the maximum score. Videos from official medical institutions scored significantly higher in content quality compared to non-official sources (P = .04). Interestingly, video quality scores showed no association with video rankings or view counts. Conclusions: Our study highlights substantial variability in the didactic and content quality of CPR-related videos on YouTube, making it difficult to predict video quality based on likes or search rankings alone. Medical educators should offer clear recommendations for valuable videos, and the creation of new videos should adhere to didactic and content checklists to ensure accuracy and effectiveness.