Abstract 139: Does Simplification of Guidelines Improve Retention of BLS Skills 3 Months After Training?

Abstract

Background: The European Resuscitation Council (ERC) 2015 basic life support (BLS) guidelines introduced a simplified algorithm compared to the ERC 2010 BLS guidelines. This was intended to improve adherence to guidelines and retention of skills. This study aimed to compare the retention of BLS skills 3 months after training using the ERC 2010 or 2015 guidelines. Methods: This was an observational study including video recordings of laypersons being skill tested 3 months after participation in a standardized ERC BLS/AED course using either the ERC 2010 guidelines or the simplified ERC 2015 guidelines. The endpoints were 1) remembering the correct sequence of BLS/AED algorithm, 2) remembering the correct sequence of the BLS/AED algorithm and performing all skills correctly, 3) time to: emergency medical service (EMS) call, first compression, and shock delivery. Results: We analyzed videos of 133 laypersons skill tested 3 months after initial training; 64 trained using the 2010 guidelines (mean ±standard deviation (SD) age: 40 ±11 years, male sex: 19 (30%)) and 69 trained using the 2015 guidelines (age: 44 ±10 years, male sex: 36 (52%)). Participants in the 2015 guidelines group improved the retention of the BLS/AED algorithm compared to the 2010 guidelines group (29 (42%) vs. 10 (16%), relative risk (RR): 2.7 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.4 - 5.1) P=0.001). Both BLS/AED algorithm and all skills were correctly performed by 13 (19%) vs. 3 (5%) (RR: 4.0 (95% CI: 1.2 - 13.5) P=0.01) in the 2015 and 2010 groups respectively. No significant difference was found in time to EMS call (difference: 3 sec (95% CI: -2 - 9 sec) P=0.27), time to first compression (difference: 4 sec, (95% CI: -3 - 10 sec) P=0.28), and time to first shock (difference: 4 sec (95% CI: -5 - 14 sec) P=0.33) between the groups. Conclusion: BLS/AED training using ERC 2015 guidelines was associated with better skill retention compared to training using ERC 2010 guidelines. There was no difference in time to EMS call, first compression, or shock delivery.