Four years of our educational automatical external defibrilation (AED) plan for emergency medical technicians (EMT)

Abstract

Purpose of the study: We describe the educational plan and the development of a programme for the introduction AED for EMTs and also, we show the results of 5 years of activity teaching AED and basic life support (BLS) in an eminently rural community as Galicia. Materials and methods: We describe the systematic way used by the PEHF-061 for the educational implantation of a program of AED. We have used the standard course of the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) for BLS-AED. The course is 9 h with theoretical and practical examination as well as an obligatory annual refresher course with four hours practising scenarios of sudden cardiac death. We have trained all the EMTs of the network of emergency sanitary transport (NEST). They work alone in the street with the support, when necessary and possible, of intensive mobile care units. Results: Training of instructors was begun with a total number of 129. During year 2000, 286 TTS in 14 courses formed. Year 2001 had 400 students distributed in 23 courses. Four hundred and forty four in 2002, 243 in 2003, 155 in 2004 and 211 in 2005. Total editions were 86. At the moment, we are in the phase of refresher training with 110 courses and 1649 students; 99.5% have passed satisfactorily. The total of registered TTS was of 1739, with 1550 active ones (88.13%). Total class hours: 1214 (theoretical 333 and practical 881). Conclusions: The implantation of an AED programme must be based on the EMT. The training in AED with a programme of 9 h is eminently practical and an annual refresher course of 4 h has been tremendously effective with 88% of success in the educational plan.