title: Successful implementation of the European Resuscitation Council basic life support course as mandatory peer-led training for medical students.
abstract: We aimed to implement the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) basic life support (BLS) and automated external defibrillator (AED) course as a mandatory peer-led training programme for medical students and to evaluate the satisfaction with this course. Medical students certified as ERC BLS/AED instructors were recruited as student trainers and organizers of the course, which was included as a mandatory part of the curriculum for second-year medical students before first clinical rotation. After each course, questionnaires were distributed to evaluate the peer-led training programme. In total, 146 students were trained and assessed. The quality of the course was rated as 9.4±0.8 (10-point scale, 10 being best), and the majority (95%) felt better prepared for their clinical rotation. Implementation of the ERC BLS/AED course as a mandatory peer-led training programme for medical students is feasible. The course has been very well accepted and the students feel better prepared for their first clinical rotation.
authors.affiliation: aDepartment of Cardiology, Aarhus University Hospital bResearch Center for Emergency Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus cDepartment of Internal Medicine, Regional Hospital of Randers, Randers, Denmark.
authors.forename: Erik L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Grove
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Løfgren
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003479:Curriculum; D047548:Defibrillators; D004501:Education, Medical; D006801:Humans; D008020:Life Support Care; D037141:Mandatory Programs; D010379:Peer Group; D012151:Resuscitation / Q000193:education; D013337:Students, Medical