Feasibility of life-supporting first-aid (LSFA) training as a mandatory subject in primary schools.
BACKGROUND
Life-supporting first-aid (LFSA) training in primary schools might prove a useful means of increasing cardiac arrest survival rates. We thus studied the feasibility of introducing first-aid training to 6-7-year old primary school children.


RESULTS
During 1 week medical students and emergency physicians provided LSFA training to 47 first- and second-year pupils, including semi-automatic defibrillation. A course assessment was made using cartoon-style questionnaires for the pupils, video tapes of the training and telephone interviews with the children's parents. Prior to training, only eight pupils (17%) were able to place in the correct sequence a series of pictures illustrating the various stages of the procedure of semi-automatic defibrillation. After training that figure rose to 24 (51%). Using a semi-automatic defibrillator, excellent performances were recorded by video camera in eight pupils. Post-training telephone interviews were conducted with 34 parents (79%), 28 (82%) of whom now considered their children capable of reacting properly in an emergency situation. The children had been given stickers displaying the European Emergency Call Number 112 together with a set of brochures. In 25 cases (74%), the children applied the stickers to their parents phones at home.


CONCLUSIONS
LSFA training is a feasible proposition for 6-7-year olds who might well be in a position to save the lives of cardiac-arrest victims. Future training sessions should determine the impact of repeat courses and the findings should be used to convince politicians and administrators of the need of LSFA training as a mandatory subject in schools.
Uray
Thomas
T
Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
Lunzer
Andreas
A
Ochsenhofer
Andreas
A
Thanikkel
Leo
L
Zingerle
Robert
R
Lillie
Peter
P
Brandl
Edith
E
Sterz
Fritz
F
D001317:Austria; D016887:Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation / Q000193:education*; D002648:Child; D003479:Curriculum; D004554:Electric Countershock / Q000295:instrumentation*; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D005392:First Aid; D006266:Health Education / Q000458:organization & administration; D006323:Heart Arrest / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D008021:Life Support Systems; D008297:Male; D012572:School Health Services; D012574:Schools; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity