Prospective Study to Assess Knowledge about Basic Life Support in College Students and Evaluate the Effectiveness of Basic Life Support Training

Abstract

Background and Aims: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrests represent critical situations wherein prompt basic life support (BLS) intervention can significantly impact survivability. This study aimed to assess the baseline knowledge of BLS among college students and evaluate the efficacy of a training intervention, gauging changes in confidence and performance scores. Methods: Following ethical approval, a pretraining BLS questionnaire was administered to participating students. Subsequently, American Heart Association-certified BLS training providers conducted hands-on training. Posttraining, participants completed confidence and their performance was evaluated by the training providers. Data analysis utilized a percentage-based methodology. Results: The findings from the questionnaire revealed that 87% of students had witnessed emergencies, with only 7.7% initiating help and 2.3% observing resuscitation efforts. Notably, a deficit in knowledge about automated external defibrillators was observed across all the participants. Approximately 49.5% expressed interest in training, while 41.7% declined periodic training. Concerningly, 53.7% cited fear of legal repercussions as a deterrent to aiding victims, and 30.09% attributed their nonintervention to a lack of BLS knowledge. Posttraining, 81.5% of students displayed average confidence, with 18.4% exhibiting poor confidence in providing roadside BLS assistance. Performance assessments revealed that 28.15% performed well, 52.90% performed at an average level, and 18.95% performed poorly during hands-on training with a mannequin. Conclusions: The study highlights a notable lack of awareness and understanding of BLS among college students, as evidenced by the pretraining questionnaire. The single training session employed in this study did not substantially enhance confidence or performance scores in providing BLS. The findings underscore the necessity for increased awareness and recurrent BLS training initiatives among the young population to bolster both confidence and practical proficiency in responding to emergency situations.